


Journey to the Scottish Highlands

by msmadeline_clancy



Series: Jim and Melinda Greatness [2]
Category: Ghost Whisperer
Genre: Arranged Marriage, Childbirth, Developing Relationship, Execution, F/M, Falling In Love, Historical AU, Period Typical Attitudes, Period Typical Sexism, Pirates, Pregnancy, Reunited and It Feels So Good, Sisterly Love, aftermath of kidnapping, circa 1700s, sailing to Scotland
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-26
Updated: 2020-11-05
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:28:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 21
Words: 86,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21964348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/msmadeline_clancy/pseuds/msmadeline_clancy
Summary: When Melinda is arranged to marry a stranger from Scotland, she holds out for more, and Jim is everything she wanted and more.
Relationships: Jim Clancy/Melinda Gordon, Katherine Gordon/Ned Banks
Series: Jim and Melinda Greatness [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1747282
Comments: 7
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Meowser_Clancy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meowser_Clancy/gifts).



In the five months since her father told her she was to marry some lord from Scotland, Melinda had waited to marry James Clancy. She took it all seriously— the duty of loving her soon-to-be husband, giving him her virtue, bearing him children, and being a woman worthy of him. He was the origin of every fantasy her heart had ever held, even if she didn’t know him.

Yet, after her mother died, there was a moment when she thought the marriage might not happen, but then it was settled by her father, and everything was put into motion. Her soon-to-be husband would be sailing to England to meet and marry her before taking her back to his home. It was hard to keep an open mind with the rumors she heard of Lord Clancy’s handsomeness and overall mystery, but she expected that overlooking certain activities, especially as she aged and lost her beauty, may be part of her duty as his wife.

She wondered what it would be like to love a man who kept so much inside him. A man of mystery, the people of the surrounding villages called him. Still, nothing had prepared her for the way her legs would tingle when she watched James walk off the ship and greet her, bowing and taking her gloved hand to press a chaste kiss there.

Melinda supposed she was lucky to marry a young, handsome man when her younger sister had not been as lucky. They rode together the short distance from the docks through the small fishing village and to her family’s estate. As they strode up to the manor on horseback, they were greeted by the staff who all stood outside neatly.

Before she could swing down to the ground an older stablekeeper stepped forward to help her dismount from her horse, but James beat him to it by sliding off his own quickly. She felt his strength in how easily he swung her down, no hesitation in the muscles on his body.

After greeting the staff, they walked up the steps together arm-in-arm so that she could show him where his rooms were. Melinda was now very aware of the hardness of his arms beneath his jacket, and the smell of him. It’s not intolerable or perfumed, he smelled more natural and earthy. It’s more manly than the likes of most men.

“There will be a party tonight in your honor,” she said as they walked through one of the upscale corridors that lead to some of the staterooms that were for guests of the manor. “In our honor, I should say. We will be married tomorrow at dusk.” His hand that had previously been holding her arm found the small of her back, and she found herself pulled closer to him as they came to stand in front of his chamber door. “This is your room, my lord. I hope it will be of your standards.”

His hand slid out and took hold of her hand, pressing a kiss to the top of her palm and pulled away from her, his eyes stormy. “It will meet them," he told her with a hint of a smile playing on his lips. "I have no doubt in that, my lady.”

“If there is anything you need, you will only have to ask,” she replied kindly.

He smiled. “I shall see you tonight at the feast then, Lady Melinda,” he said with another kiss, but this time to her cheek.

“I will, my lord,” she said, curtseying as James turned to enter his chambers and the door was closed.

* * *

The next evening, they were wed in the gardens of her family’s estate with only the stars and waning moon lighting their way. Jim didn’t wear silks or fancy clothes. Nothing that suited for a lord’s wedding ceremony. He made do with his best armor, which had been shined and polished. So while he may have been in his own clothes, he truly didn’t feel like it. He felt like an imposter, but he pushed such feelings aside, as he walked through the hedges for his and Melinda’s wedding.

Few knew of it and fewer still attend, only their families and a few very close friends. Melinda's father gave her away and he felt every pair of eyes on them as he took hold of her hand. The priest led them through the ceremony and they said their vows before the pastor said a blessing over their rings.

As the words, “You may kiss the bride,” filled his ears, her eyes fell closed and she waited for his kiss, but instead, James kissed her forehead.

The newly wedded husband and wife went straight to the ballroom, where many more guests had already gathered by the time that the newly wedded couple made their entrance. The room was big and bright with huge chandeliers and the bustling music in the air.

There are hundreds of tables with the most exquisite food with attendants waiting to serve them. No expense had been spared, every glass was filled with sparkling amber bubbles and there were gilded platters of fine food being served by the dozen. Friends and strangers alike fill her home, and she was expected to smile at them all - they were all here for them.

Everyone seemed to be having a wonderful time eating and conversing. After their hunger had been satisfied, the bride and groom open the dance floor with their first dance together as a wedded couple. Jim had hardly had the chance to speak with his wife all night, for each time they came close, someone would pull him or her away from each other. Melinda looked stunning and each time he caught the gaze of her, his breath was sucked out of his throat.

Even as they sat at their wedding feast, he could hardly believe that she was his wife. On the dancefloor, it was a dream as they moved as one, their movements complemented by the other. They looked absolutely wonderful and the crowd of guests managed to be mystified by their beauty. They both danced gracefully across the dance floor to the same waltz all of that night.

Before long there were calls for a bedding, Jim had refused at first, but it wasn’t long before he ran out of excuses and the noblemen were arguing that some of the traditions needed to be recognized. Yet, the last thing he wanted was to make Melinda uncomfortable. He could see she was just as reluctant as him, a blush crept on her cheeks as she met his gaze sheepishly with a small smile as she took a bite of their wedding cake.

“We will go to bed on our own. We will be sailing for Scotland and no one will follow us,” he said, standing up and holding his hand out to her. “Shall we ride for the docks, my love?” There wasn’t any hesitation before her soft hand was placed in his and they both rose, walking out of the ballroom. The moment the door closed behind them, he ushered her just a few steps away before turning to her with a slight smile and said, “If you wish to spend tonight in yer own cabin, lass, you may. I will not pressure ye tonight with anything as we are still unfamiliar with each other. I swear of it.” He had a brass tone to his voice, mainly because he was Scottish, but he could tell she liked it.

There was something about how Melinda looked at him when he talked, looking eager to listen to everything he said as though it was a new experience. Though he supposed it was and it was the drawl and brightness in his voice that might've attracted her.

She shook her head. “What will that say to the ones around us?” She asked quietly.

“I suppose yer right,” he replied. “We will share a cabin tonight. I dinna ken when my brothers will stop drinking their arses off, but I will make sure they don’t come bothering us any. They can be… a bunch of bastards.”

She laughed and nodded. “Some drinking is allowed for a celebration such as a wedding though, no?” She said jokingly.

“I canna disagree with ye there, lass,” he said. “Drinking is mighty fun if you know when to stop.”

“You have a point, but since you wish to check on your brothers I’ll take my leave,” she said and turned around.

* * *

Melinda had no expectations as to what her wedding night would be as she boarded the ship and the crew greeted her. She was shown to the captain’s cabin, a courtesy often shown to a lord or lady when they boarded a ship, especially on a journey for their honeymoon. She was surprised to find that there were already some minor personal items of James’ in the cabin.

Her fingers touched the pale blue damask bedding, which has been folded back to reveal stark white sheets. She stared at them for a moment, before turning back to her lady's maid, Andrea. “We should begin to get this dress off, shouldn’t we?” she asked, sitting on the end of the bed, the thick white skirts of her wedding gown fanning around her.

Andrea nodded and went to her adjoining changing room and left her alone. Melinda rose from the bed and began to take a look around. It was a larger room than she had ever had before, one with a four-post bed and two comfortable enough looking sitting chairs which were bolted to the ground.

She walked back over toward the bed and her fingers drifted over the book on James’ nightstand, which she picked up curiously and turned over. It was not from an author she recognized, though she supposed it might be a medical journal because he was a doctor. Along with the book, there were several pairs of cufflinks and a pad of paper with his name printed on it.

Her own side table has an elegant dish with an intricate design in her favorite color, clearly for the purpose of her dropping her jewelry there. There was also a vial of her favorite lavender oil. It was likely this was sent along with her other belongings to take with her.

When the door clicked, she was surprised to find James enter. She stood before him, her husband, still in her wedding gown from their ceremony. She had not expected him so soon and doubted he thought she would have already made it to the room.

“I— er, I hope you canna excuse me for intruding, Melinda,” he said, bowing slightly.

“It’s alright,” she said quietly. “I thought that you were going to see to your brothers…”

“They dinna seem likely to stop celebrating our union any time soon. I thought it would be best for me to take my leave with my wife before I rouse any suspicion,” he said, keeping his eyes lowered from hers as he spoke. He looked like an abashed boy who'd walked into a room he was unwelcome to enter. “If you would rather me wait until yer undressed, I can step outside.”

He was blushing, she noticed, and a smile appeared on her face as his words soothed any worries she had about their wedding night together. “There’s no need for that. You are my husband now, but I will go to the dressing room. My lady’s maid is in there already.”

He nodded. “If you so wish, lassie,” he said.

“I wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable either, James.” She said and he lifted his head slightly to meet her gaze. "We did only just become acquainted."

He nodded and she took her leave, meeting Andrea in the doorway and walking further into the dressing room. Her lady’s maid said nothing and closed the doors behind them. The process to undress her took almost as long as it had for her to prepare for her day. Her gown came off first, then her corset. One by one, pieces were removed until she was left stark naked. Andrea helped slip a nightgown her father must've sent her over her head, and Melinda almost gasped from how immodest it was.

Each cuff was fastened with a silk blue blow, and it’s tied together at the front with another. She felt like she was being wrapped up like a gift for her husband and it made her stomach clench with nervousness. To keep the chill from her bones, she pulled on a silk robe. Her hair was let down from her elaborate updo and brushed until her hair shined.

“Thank you, Andrea,” she murmured and then gripped her friend’s hand. "You may take your leave for the night."

Melinda turned back towards the closed door that leads to where her new husband was waiting for her. She slowly entered and noticed he’d poured them each a goblet of wine but didn’t look up as she walked toward him.

She broke the silence. “How would you prefer we proceed?" She asked quietly. "Shall I lay on the bed, or would you prefer…?”

Her husband’s eyes drifted to her face, taking in the sight of her. She noticed his tongue sneak out to wet his lips and his Adam's apple bob in his throat.

“You may sit with me here by the fire if you wish to,” he said and cleared his throat. She moved to sit beside him, only a bit of space between them. "You remember what I told you before?"

She nodded. "I didn't want to disappoint you," she replied solemnly. "My father said....he said to do as you told me. It's my duty." 

He shook his head. “No, that is not what I want from this marriage. I do not wish to share yer bed until ye want me to,” he replied.

“And what if I never wish for you to share my bed?” She asked, curious as to what his answer would be.

“Then I never will, Melinda.” He answered. “Perhaps we could sit and talk for a bit? I poured some wine,” he said, gesturing to the other goblet in front of him.

She moved at his invitation, grabbing the silver goblet and sipping the red liquid. After several moments, her voice echoed in the room, a bit skittish. “I have never been to Scotland. What is it like?” 

“Oh, yes, your father told me you've never left England." He explained, a smile coming to his face as he thought of his home. "It is a beautiful country… all of the trees, hills, and rain, even snow, that you could want in one country."

“It sounds wonderful,” she said, looking at the wine in the goblet. “You know, I was thinking… during our honeymoon on the water… do you think we could visit my sister?”

“We can do anything ye wish to,” he said and looked at her then, and Melinda stared back with her brown eyes. “Whereabouts does she live?”

“When my mother died, my father set about selling us off as quickly as he could so that we would not be around when he decided to remarry some young woman who would give him sons." She gave him a small, sad smile as she told her story. "Our marriage was fast-tracked and Katherine was sent to marry an older man who lives in Spain. I haven’t seen her since she left last month. We write to each other often, but I miss her.”

“We shall visit her often then. I look forward to meeting her if she is anything like you,” he said with a nod.

“Are you as close with your brothers as I am with my sister?” She asked then, sipping her wine.

“I suppose,” he replied. “We’ve fought our battles together as brothers through and through. I dinna ken other men who know me as well as Daniel or Robert. Only one may share true blood, but it’s not Robert’s fault he was born a bastard. Sometimes I believe they both are better men than I am and deserve the blessings I’ve been given.”

“You are different from other men,” she concluded out loud and their eyes met again. “You’re thoughtful, kind, and you don’t take what you’ve been given for granted. Many men can’t say the same. That much I know from meeting you today, James Clancy.”

“Am I?” He asked.

“Yes, and I would like for you to share my bed tonight,” she replied, softly. “Is that alright?”

“Of course, Melinda.” He said, holding his hand out to her. “I would be honored to share yer bed, even if we only lay next to each other. Shall we go together?”

“Yes,” she voiced in a small whisper. "We shall."

His eyes grew wide as she moved closer beside him and placed her other hand in his. With his own hands, he guided her to stand up and then let go of them, leaning forward to kiss her and cupping her cheek. It was their lips that met this time, lingering longer than he’d ever would have dared in public. Her arms twined around his neck. When he gently broke away from her, she smiled at him.

“Don’t you carry me away now?” She asked, breathlessly.

“Aye.” He smiled brightly at her. “I do.”

She had never seen him smile like that before. It was glorious, how it lit up his whole face from his eyes to his mouth. It made her smile even wider. And then, with a self-assurance that shocked her, he picked her up in one smooth motion and strode towards the bed.

* * *

James had always imagined this moment, taking his bride into his arms and bringing her to bed. However, Melinda was more than he’d ever expected as his bride. He felt her curves pressed tight against him, suggesting more than he had anticipated. Feeling bold, he kissed her softly on the cheek and she threaded a hand in his hair as he did so.

When they made it to the bed, he set her down gently, her legs dangling over the edge. For a brief moment, he stood slightly transfixed and contemplated his next move. She reached for his tunic and began to loosen it, making the decision for him. She quickly had him down to his breeches, both delivering gentle kisses and caresses of shoulders, neck, and arms in between the effort of disrobing.

When she saw his bare chest and her suspicions of its well-muscled makeup were confirmed, her hand twitched at her side, ready to touch him, afraid of being too brazen. James saw and took her hand in his, placing it at the spot where she could feel his heart nearly beating out of his chest

“You are very handsome,” she said, meeting his eyes.

“As are ye a very bonny lass, Melinda.” He kissed her then, his fingers ghosting over her shoulder and down her arms until they reached for her waist.

She felt small as his hand nearly circled it fully. She wanted the kiss to deepen and he could tell she was no stranger to a man’s tongue in her mouth but waited for him, and rather than invade her mouth, he moved down her neck and across her collarbone. His hands stroked her sides, up and down, never going quite high enough to reach her breasts. He gently guided her back onto the bed, stepping between her legs, and leaning over her to continue kissing a path across her body.

She felt him then, between her legs, straining against his breeches. It was nothing but slight pressure but it caused heat to rise in her belly. She sighed and ran a hand across his naked back.

It was so quiet. _She is so quiet. Nothing like what Daniel or Robert claimed they are like when they beg for it_ , James thought, fear pricking his chest. Was he doing something wrong?

His hands stilled just below her breasts and his head stilled on her chest. She could feel him panting slightly through the fine fabric of her nightgown. He pushed himself up and off of her, standing away from the bed. “Forgive me.”

“For what? Is this not what I wanted you to do?” She asked. “You’re my husband, James.”

“I never wished for this to… be a duty.” He said, turning away from her. “I don’t want to rush you or make you feel uncomfortable. It might be best if I sleep over here.”

Tears welled in her eyes. “I did not think it was unpleasant.”

“It is not that, Melinda. Yer a treasure... and I want to worship you,” he said, solemn and quiet in his best English accent that he could muster. She laughed at him, at his attempt to mimic her, and smiled brightly at him. “I know - I know that I was forced upon you by your father. That you.... may have expected me to be different." He sighed, and it was then when she saw that his breeches were still tented; he was not lying to her. "I do not wish to force myself on any woman, let alone my wife.” His head hung, dejected, and inadequate to the task before him.

“James… will you look at me?” She whispered and he raised his head to look at her. She spoke slowly and quietly to him. “Yes, for years, I dreaded the day my father would tell me that I would marry, especially after my little sister’s match was less than favorable, but you have proved me wrong every step of the way. Every rumor or whisper I heard about you was wrong and I think you will be a good match. You have already shown me that you are strong in how you care for the ones you love, but also gentle and I am grateful for that.” She held out her hand and he took it, stepping closer to her. “I am grateful that we can share this night and these two weeks together alone on the open seas. And I know when it’s over, you will have to go back to your duties as a lord, but I am determined to enjoy that time with you.” Her voice grew fierce and determined. She met his eyes and her hand crushed his with surprising strength. “You are the only man in my life that has ever taken account of my needs…” She grabbed her nightgown and pulled it over her head, letting it float to the bed. She was naked before him. She took one more step towards him, his heart pounding as she did. She was so beautiful. “I trust you.”

And then he came at her full tilt. His mouth flew to hers, his hands wrapping around her to crush her against his chest. He felt the weight of her breasts between them and as his tongue plunged into her mouth, he longed to put it upon those sweet, hard nipples. She met him with equal fervor, tilting her head, stroking his mouth.

There were so many things he wanted to do to her. And he knew she was right, there was no guarantee they would have found love in each other, but who were they to stop it? He could feel the blossoming of something more as he kissed her, holding her soft skin in his hands. He just had not known she would be so willing to give herself to him. 

They hoisted themselves further onto the bed in a pile of limbs. His mouth found one of her breasts and kissed it, circling her nipple until he finally laved at it with the full width of his tongue and sucked it into his mouth. She moaned and her hips shuddered against his stomach involuntarily. Desire rose up in him, his blood galloping in his veins.

He slowed down slightly, giving the same attention to the other. His free hand ghosted over her stomach, her hip, and her thigh, gently pushing her legs apart. He barely brushed his fingers between her thighs with his knuckles but found them soft and a bit damp. He brought a hand up to rest just below her belly button, as he moved back to her mouth. 

He kissed her fully, his fingers dancing on her lower belly, giving her time to stop him. When she did not, he moved lower, cupping her, drawing a finger down her slit. She soaked the finger that plunged into her, moaning into his mouth, as her nails dug into her arm. He peppered her neck with kisses and he searched for the pearl his brothers had told him was there on all women. When he found it, he drew a circle around it with his index finger. Melinda’s hips rose up into his touch. He did it again.

She panted, “That’s good,” and it made his heart sing. "Right there... oh, yes...."

He kissed his way back to her breasts and then sat up as he continued to work her with his fingers. He marveled at how soft she felt, how she slipped through his fingers like silk. He wanted to look at her, how she was made. And when he saw her pink, glistening flesh and inhaled her scent, he knew he wanted to try something else. He removed his hand and tentatively licked his finger.

James realized then that Melinda’s eyes were upon him, her mouth open in lust and confusion as he sucked the taste of her from his hand. Their eyes stayed locked as he lowered himself toward the bed, taking one of her thighs over his shoulder. He heard her give soft, incoherent noises of protest the closer he got to her, but he found one of her hands in the sheets and wove their fingers together.

She held her head up to watch him as he gently placed a kiss over the bud between her legs. Then she felt the firm pressure of his tongue mix with the coarseness of his facial hair against her flesh and she could keep her head raised no longer.

He never pressed into her too hard. He was gentle and persistent. As if she was writing a secret language upon her with his tongue. She could not deny it felt good but she was also not sure that he should be doing it at all. Then he changed positions slightly and she felt him lick her entrance. She tried to keep quiet but she bucked against his face. He repeated the action and she bucked again. She felt his lips curl into a smile and sighed, sad she could not see it.

He squeezed the hand that still tangled with hers. Then, he set about her like a parched man come out of the desert. Her legs slammed over his ears and yet he still heard the noises she made, unlike anything he had ever heard escape human lips. Her muscles seemed to all tense at once, lifting her off the bed, winding tighter upon themselves and he kept up his action, hoping she would snap.

Sensation rushed over her. She could not control it, name it, explain it. It built inside her; her body was a creek that raged with rapids after a hard rain, and then finally, the water crested, leaving her a puddle on the bed.

She felt him leave her for the briefest moment as she rode her high. Then she felt him return, a finger, probing her sensitive center. She looked up at him through hazy eyes and realized his breeches were still on.

“Are you going to take them off any time tonight?” She asked, still trying to catch her breath.

“Shh,” he shushed her with a kiss to the temple before slowly. He was grinning with pride. “Don’t worry about me, lassie. Another time.” He moved beside her and they were still wrapped together when he looked up into her face, this beautiful woman in his bed, and he brought his lips softly to hers. Smoothing her hair out of her face, he settled in beside her.

“Are you sure there is nothing I can do, James?” she asked, smoothing his hair in the same fashion.

“Will ye call me Jim?” He asked.

She nodded, running a hand through his damp hair. “You may call me Mel, if you’d like. My sister used to.”

“Mel,” he said, saying it out loud to hear it on his own tongue. “Like that?”

“Yes, like that.” She smiled as he gathered her to his chest and pulled the blue damask duvet over her naked body and his own, his soft breath on her neck. She was lured into an exhausted sleep by the sound of the waves against the boat, feeling both warm and content in her husband’s arms.


	2. Chapter 2

The sound of waves crashing against wood was what woke Jim. He became aware of a sweet scent under his nose, the feel of his own hand nestled around a warm belly and his eyes snapped open as he moved his hand away from Melinda in a daze, grazing the underside of her breasts in the process. His manhood twitched unintentionally by her thighs, making him edge away even more as if not to wake her or cause her any discomfort.

The efforts were in vain and he froze as his wife’s eyes fluttered open slightly. She slowly turned her body towards him and reached out to hold his torso, resting her head on his shoulder. Jim relaxed against her, but he could feel the heat rushing to his face. He didn't know if she was fully awake or not, but he contented himself with gently threading his fingers through her hair.

Her eyes were closed again, but she smiled against his skin. His insides felt warm and he allowed himself a moment to savor the feel of her against him and the warmth in her touch. He had not felt so blissful since he was a child. The idea chilled him, and the warmth in his chest was joined by guilt.

He breathed in the scent in her hair before willing himself to budge. “Melinda,” he began, his tone too formal. “Lass… are ye awake?”

He felt her tense under him and he edged aside slightly as to allow her to sit up. Instead, she only raised her eyes to meet his gaze. His heart quickened as Melinda sat up, the blanket slipping from her shoulders. He felt his face grow hot, but his eyes didn’t leave hers. She leaned forward and kissed him gently, her soft fingers sliding into his hair. Relieved, he kissed her back, placing his hands on her hips.

Their lips parted, but they kept their foreheads pressed together. He could feel her breath on his skin and knew her heart was beating as fast as his. “How do ye feel? Did ye sleep well?” Jim asked her and it felt like such a loaded question.

Physically or emotionally? What kind of answer did he want for her? “I’m fine,” she responded blandly, which he doesn’t appear to like. 

He caught her face in his hands, blue eyes searching her own. “Please, tell me the truth. I want there to be no secrets between us, Melinda. How are ye?” His words were gentle, but she knew not to refuse.

Jim didn’t seem like the kind of man who would hurt those that he loved, and she highly doubted he would ever raise a hand to her after the kindness he’d shown her last night, but there’s something about him which made her shudder. 

“I’m feeling a little overwhelmed… being in a new place and all with no one I know,” she said softly. “But I am grateful, Jim. I am grateful you are my husband.” She didn’t fear him as he’d never given her any reason to. It’s only ever excitement that she felt, which was baffling as it was intoxicating.

He nodded. “For yer own safety, I ask that ye not go wandering ‘bout the deck at night or alone. Always have ye’re lady’s maid with ye. It’s likely no man working on this ship is very noble or to care that ye are my wife.”

“Are you worried that someone might… try something?” she asked suddenly.

His hand stilled on top of her own and he frowned deeply, his body had grown tense beside her. He muttered something under his breath which she can’t quite make out and then rose from the bed. He doesn’t say anything to her, and she felt a flicker of anger inside. Whose keeping secrets now? 

“Well?” Her tone was more abrupt than she anticipated. “Are you?”

“Most men who live on the sea are beasts, sweetheart.” He was angered at her questioning him, she could hear it in his voice.

Yet at the same time, Melinda had a feeling it’s not directed at her, but his mood had shifted so quickly. Before she could question how he knew, there was a polite knock at the door. In walked Andrea, a fine gown slung over her arm, and an apologetic expression worn on her face.

Jim took it as his cue to leave and pressed a delicate kiss to the top of her head. Melinda was reminded at that moment that despite her husband’s tenderness and want for her, they were still strangers to one another. She barely knew anything about him, other than rumors and small tales she had been told.

“Something on your mind, milady?” Andrea prodded as she moved about the chambers. Melinda glanced at the small dish on her bedside, where her pale blue sapphire wedding ring sat, sparkling in the rays of sunlight which beam through the windows.

“No, Andrea. Please draw me a bath,” she said softly, moving to sit up in bed.

Melinda was glad that Jim was letting her visit Katherine so soon so that she can have the comfort of a familiar face. As the lady of the house when they travel to Scotland at the end of the honeymoon, Melinda knew that she must walk around in such a way that will inspire respect from all those who serve the estate and live there. Jim was her family now, although she still struggled to settle that within her mind. She was still a Gordon, even if her name has changed.

The Lady of Avalon, that was her official title. She outranked her parents, sister and any of her friends. She didn’t feel any different though. When she used to imagine married life, Melinda always thought that she would feel something else, more settled perhaps? But she had woken up feeling just as she did before, the only difference was that she’d experienced something new. 

The great mystery about what happened in the marital bedroom had been broken, yet not completely, and she can’t help but wonder why everyone was so secretive in the first place. Sure, she had writhed in the sheets in an ungodly manner, clinging to Jim as though he were the source of her life, but he had not made her feel shameful about it. On the contrary, he seemed to enjoy making her whimper and wine beneath him without any pleasure in return.

Melinda felt her body flush, as she moved to stand in front of the mirror, as naked as her birth. There are marks on her porcelain flesh, reminders of her husband’s greedy hands and mouth. She wondered if he will let her cherish him in the same way he had to her tonight. While Jim was good at physically showing her who he was, yet she needed more words from him. Who was the man that she has married? She was desperate to find out.

It was some time before she left her bedroom dressed in a gown of pale grey, after taking her breakfast in the cabin, a courtesy permitted to highborn ladies and men. She made the journey from below to above deck in seconds, since she'd been on a boat multiple times during her childhood.

The cabin had been stifling her all morning, making her feel constricted. She was dying for the sea air, to breathe, and despite Jim’s warning, she was going outside alone. Her world immediately calmed when she emerged onto the deck, and hurried over to the rail, clutching it with both hands and tossing her head back to get the full brunt of the sun and sea.

Freedom. This was freedom.

She wondered where they would dock first, eyes floating across the vast open water as she watched waves crash against the side as the helm sliced through. The boat rocked, and Melinda closed her eyes, listening to the slap of the waves. She heard the shouts of the crew below and tried hard to ignore them, but soon it was a closer voice that startled her.

“We hardly had a chance to speak last night or this morning, my lady,” Andrea said as she approached her slowly. Despite only being her lady’s maid, she had grown close to the woman after all these years. “I remember from my sister’s wedding day that it can be a tiring event.” Her friend drew herself closer to her. “Was James kind to you? I don’t know of him that well, but he seems to be more gracious and kind than any other man I’ve had the chance of meeting.”

She understood the double meaning of what Andrea was asking. Prior to the wedding, her friend had tried to assure her of the rumors of Lord Clancy’s devotion to duty and kind nature in a friendly and necessary attempt to calm her frazzled nerves before the wedding.

“He was most agreeable. Our night together was lovely,” she responded politely, finding the conversation to be borderline uncomfortable. “I look forward to many happy years with him.”

She didn’t know how much she wanted to let her friend know about her wedding night. She had grown up in a household that remained tight-lipped about what happened in a marriage, and her parent's union was every bit the contract that it had designed to be, even after nearly ten years together. 

Melinda never wanted that for herself, but she had long accepted that marriage and love were not always one. But Jim made her blood heat and her cheeks flush, and she cannot imagine ever being indifferent towards his devotion.

When she thought about being his wife, it doesn’t feel like a shackle has been placed around her wrist, for he was just as equally hers. “I enjoy his company, even if we only met yesterday,” she whispered, her feelings gnawing at her. “I am grateful for the man he is.”

Melinda looked away from Andrea and far off into the distance where she could almost see the beginning of the shape of something. She wondered what as she looked over the clear blue ocean and felt a strange sense of curiosity looking at what could lay across it.

“Are you okay? You’ve gone very quiet, my lady.” Andrea asked.

Melinda pressed a fake smile to her lips, and nodded her head earnestly, “Just in my own thoughts, it happens quite a lot.” She replied. “I have a lot on my mind.”

“I suppose you do,” Andrea said. “I am going to ready your lunch for you. Are you alright to stay out here alone?”

“Yes. You need not worry about my safety, dear friend. I will see you again soon,” she said, smiling at her friend.

It was sometime later when Jim walked outside, soft curling tendrils come loose from the knot at the back of his head, and she could see that he’d tugged at his necktie. He must be stressed, for he doesn’t smile at her as he walked over, but he does gently rest his head against her own for a moment- for such a simple action, it’s strangely intimate. 

“I thought I warned ye to stay clear of being alone on deck, my love.” She could feel the way his fingers slide over her wedding ring before holding onto her hand on the railing of the ship.

“Andrea only just went below deck,” she said, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.

“Aye, I saw her.” He replied gruffly, and she wondered if he was displeased by her lack of commitment to her promise. “Don’t fret, my wife, ye are not on trial. I understand that yer father may have demanded things from yer mother and punished her when she didn’t listen, but I have no desire to do such a thing to ye, Melinda.”

She looked at him and frowned, “You’re not like most men, Jim Clancy.”

He put his hands on either side of her hips and pulled her closer, which made her gasp, “Jim!” Melinda looked around for anyone in the vicinity, but any crew member she did see paid them no attention. “Anyone could see us out here like this,” she whispered, even if she felt herself drawing closer. “It’s not… proper.”

“What does it matter? I am yers and ye’re my wife...let them look,” he whispered in her ear.

It took little persuasion for her to lean forward, to kiss his wanting lips tenderly. Melinda wanted to know every inch of her husband, inside and out. If she could steal him away to only be in her keeping while she dissects his mind and discovers everything about him, she would.

Ever since she heard about him, she’d been falling, and now she wanted to know all of his secrets. Being in his company, feeling the way he cherished her, Melinda knew that there was nothing more important than them - something worth waiting for, but how was the biggest secret. She hoped that he would share something more meaningful about himself soon, but does not dwell on it as their lips are pressed together.

* * *

The skies darken with the threat of rain before the evening arrived, which made getting to know each other better. After sharing lunch and playing games of chess, there were some mysteries revealed to her about her husband.

He told her of his galant hunting stories with his brothers and the battles he fought. She told him more of her sister and her childhood along with her love for books, which he responded by telling her he owned the largest library in his region and that impressed her.

Just before they were to go to the mess hall below deck for dinner, Jim pulled her close and pressed a kiss to the back of her neck as he clasped a matching necklace around it.

“Are you certain that you’re not trying to buy my affection?” she teased, looking at her appearance through the mirror.

He smiled at her, but there’s a sadness in his eyes. “I think ye’ll like me well enough for now without me needin’ to buy ye presents, Melinda.” He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her from behind.

As she watched them standing in the mirror, it occurred to her how well matched they looked. She always looked at handsome couples in her girlhood and wondered if she would look that good with her own husband. Those were the days when she had her crush on Kevin, who looked at her as nothing more than a pretty noble lady. Melinda chuckled to herself at how naive her crush on him had been. Now when she looks at Jim, she couldn’t remember what it was about that stableboy which made him so charming to her. 

“This necklace belonged to my mother, as did the ring I gave ye on our wedding day. When the end was near, she told me that the jewels were no longer hers and that I was to give them to the girl I would one day marry.” Jim smiled then, as though he’s recalling a fond memory. He held her closer still, with arms snaked around her waist. “A girl that I would swear to protect and cherish, until my dyin’ breath.” 

She turned in his grasp slowly, her arms reaching up to loop around his neck. “Did I marry a bleeding poet?” she murmured, searching his face. “You say strange things. You speak as though we have always been fated, that you knew that the moment I saw your face, I would recognize another part of myself. These are the words of tales, not real life.” She pressed a kiss to his lips softly, her fingers caressing the back of his neck and tied back curls. 

“I dreamed of ye, Melinda, and I think ye dreamed of me too.” He pulled away from her and instead offered his arm. “I promise that I shall tell ye more about myself as the days pass between us. One day there will be nothing ye won’t know.”

She mulled over his words, wanting to believe with every fibre of her being that he will unveil his own mystery to her. “Very well. You are lucky that I am a patient woman.” She took his offered arm, allowing her fingers to brush against his dinner jacket.

She was curious about the crew, and why her husband seemed so irritated by their presence around her. She knew better than to trust them, but she didn’t think they were outwardly bad men, were they? Her father had been seen as a good one, but only ever presented her mother with happiness when she gave him a child, and scorned when they had both been girls and came too early.

Despite being married for only a day, Melinda could already feel the pressure and expectation of having children. Before too long, Jim would surely come to expect her to bear him a son or two. She knew that a man had little patience in that regard, but maybe he will prove himself to once again be different from his peers. Apart from any man she’d ever known, Jim was entirely different. She knew that well enough already.

“Yer’re doing it again, Mel,” he hummed against her ear.

Melinda became aware of her surroundings and realized that they’ve traveled along the corridor and to the mess hall, and she recalled doing none of it. Some women have been accused of female hysteria for much less and sent to live in an asylum. Not that any of them actually had any madness of the mind, but it was an easy way for a man to be rid of his wife.

“Sometimes my thoughts are all too consuming,” she responded bashfully and caressed his cheek with her hand. 

“Ye can always tell me your troubles, Melinda. I want ye to be happy,” he said.

It was easy to believe that he would not judge her, despite the weak impression that she had got of marriage growing up. “Later,” she whispered softly and squeezed his arm.

Her husband nodded his head in agreement, then once again offered his arm to her as they walked into the loud room that held benches for all the crew and passengers to eat at. Unfamiliar voices filled her ears, swirling in her mind as she tries to place them. It did not take Melinda long for her to realize that she had never seen or heard of these people before - they must undoubtedly be from Scotland and was why Jim knew more of them than she did.

Beneath the light of dozens of candlelight, a girl with pale features and dark raven hair stepped forward, her cheeks flushed with a hint of pink. She was very beautiful, she observed, as the girl walked forward with a polite smile. Her mother had taught her how to be a Lady of the house some, and that was exactly what she was going to be. 

“Jim, it’s good to see you.” the girl spoke brightly, her arms folded around her husband in a familiar greeting. They must be related or else she would surely have made it to the wedding. “My father told me you were to be married before you returned… but I didn’t believe him! You were always so headstrong about never marrying when we were little.”

Melinda realized that while Jim seemed glad to see the girl, he did not greet her father with the same courtesy. “Uncle Howard,” he greeted tensely, holding out his hand tensely towards the man. The fierceness of her husband’s expression felt as he looked at her, and motioned towards her. “May I introduce the Duchess of Avalon and my wife, Melinda.”

Jim’s uncle stepped closer to her, allowing her to fully access his appearance. Unlike the girl, he was aged and sprinkled with grey hair, his belly was rounded and eyes lined and sunken from time. “A pleasure to meet you,” she smiled politely, tucking a grimace beneath her lips as he pressed an unnecessarily wet kiss to the back of her hand.

“Yer wife may be English, but she sure is bony!” Howard declared.

They were soon seated and eating the food that was served to them. Another of Jim’s cousins took a seat beside her, and she was reminded of her batard brother Gabriel, the ale on his tongue smelled the same. She learned Jim’s male cousin was called Willie, (short for William), and he had a slicked-back appearance that doesn’t match the common twang of his voice.

He wore a jewel-encrusted sun on his lapel, which seemed far too grand of a trinket for an obvious middle-class family. She wondered if the man has a talent for gambling, or something far more sinister.

She doubted it as Willie spoke tirelessly of himself and of his many pursuits. She feigned interest while dipping her spoon into her soup, casting a glance over at Jim who was sat opposite her. He’s flanked by his uncle and Alice, the pretty raven-haired girl. Melinda clenched the silverware slightly, although she blamed her tense mood on her poor company. 

“Did you hear me, my lady?” The voice was closer to her ear than expected, and she whipped her head around out of surprise.

“Sorry, my lord. Come again?” She excused herself and tried to lean away from him. Melinda does not need to look at her husband, to know he’s furious with the proximity.

“I said, has little James played with you like a woman yet?” There was a darkness to the words which makes her shiver. “Pretty English girls like yerself tend to be scared of a monster when they meet us Scots… especially if they marry us.” Her heart pounded in her chest and she clenched the spoon in her hand even tighter until her knuckles turned white and her fingers burned around the utensil. “...but they soon realize that the monster is already in their bed.” Willie reached to touch her hand, but she heard the sound of a fist being slammed down on the table, which made her jump in her skin.

Her eyes lift to reach Jim’s own pools of fury. He was stood hunching over the table with his hands balled into fists. “That’s enough of yer damn games, William. Keep your vile words to yerself and leave my wife out of it.”

Willie barked out a laugh and clapped his hands together greedily. “There he is! Come on, cousin, show your wife the real you, and the beast which you’re concealing from her. I heard whispers of clean sheets and no bedding… is that true?”

“Do you truly believe servants’ gossip?” He yelled, despite them both knowing the truth and that they hadn’t laid together as man and wife yet. Not fully. “Do you?”

“On yer reaction, cousin. Yes, I do.” Willie said, stone-faced.

“It’s merely gossip,” he said, coming across the table to yank his cousin from his seat. “You should know better, cousin. Apologize now or I will rip your tongue out.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Willie laughed and shrugged Jim’s grip off his shoulder, grabbing his goblet and walking across the room to fill his cup with ale. He seemed no more interested in apologizing than her husband did at backing down.

Melinda tried not to flinch from the implication of Jim’s words. Alice’s expression was regretful, while Howard’s was full of feigned annoyance, and dare she believe it, amusement. “Son, apologize at once. You were out of line.” The older man’s chastisement does not seem genuine, and Melinda almost believed that they were trying to purposefully rile Jim up — although she can’t seem to understand why, unless they find it all to be terribly clever.

She was grateful for Alice’s interruption, as her voice sliced through the tension as she began to discuss a new French fashion. The girl was seated at the opposite end of the table but made herself heard to calm down the room. The next course passed without incident. William mumbled an apology and left the mess hall, and Jim’s brother Daniel moved to sit beside her, providing her with a far more tolerable conversation.

It was a few hours later when she excused herself for bed and Jim promised to follow soon, once he’s had a drink and a cigar with the other gentleman. She wasn’t even sure he enjoyed it all that much, but the men would accuse him of being impolite for not partaking in the manly ritual.

Melinda climbed the stairs with slow movements, stifling a yawn as she did. The day had been surprisingly long and rather eventful. Gerald Clancy’s taunts remain present in her mind, as considered the hidden meaning behind the dark works. It’s possible that they were spoken falsely, but she knew that the intention had been to rile Jim up. But why? 

She crossed the hallway and was soon back in her and Jim’s cabin. Andrea had accompanied her from the hall rather quietly and when they were in the room alone, the lady’s maid meticulously combed out her hair and dressed her in a thin, lace-trimmed nightgown. There was nothing plain about Melinda’s choice of wardrobe, especially now that she was married.

“You may take your leave, Andrea. Thank you,” she said as she sat on the top of the bed, smiling as her lady curtsied and took her leave. Grateful for the moment when she could finally climb into bed, Melinda fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

* * *

Melinda woke up feeling breathless, writhing in soft sheets and arching from the bed lustfully. Her hands stroke over a mop of dark curls, which bob between her legs as her husband flicked his eager tongue over her sex.  By the sound of faint movement in the corridors outside her bedroom and the strand of light from beneath the curtains over the porthole, she could tell that it was once again the morning.  Her toes curled from the sensations and she let out a gasp.

Jim paused his ministrations and looked at her with a devilish glint in his eyes. “Good morning,” he murmured against her mound of flesh, which sent sparks down her spine. “Ye’re finally awake.”

Strong hands gripped her thighs to hold her in place as she let out short, breathless moans. She couldn’t escape the growing pleasure which prickled across her skin, her nipples hardening and her cheeks flushing.  She chanted his name as she peaked, shuddering as she came down from the euphoric high. Her body rocked against his hot mouth, eyes watering from the sexual relief as her husband slowly laid beside her with a smug grin.

“I enjoy seeing ye unravel for me like that,” he chuckled, licking his lips.

She looked up at him through hazy eyes and moved toward him, seeking his lips in a kiss. "Come here..." She was met eagerly and held him close, feeling him rock his hips against her. “I want you,” she whispered as their lips parted.

“Is this because of last night? Because if ye are worried… there is nothing to worry about,” he explained softly, tracing his fingers over the curve of her jaw. 

“No,” she shook her head. “I want to be with you… completely. I trust you.”

“Ye trust me,” he repeated her with a smile on his face and then he lunged forward, sealing their lips together again.

She saw the barest glimpse of his cock between his legs as he rid of his breeches and she felt no fear, despite its size. She reached for his bicep and squeezed, feeling his taut muscles underneath. He kissed her hand - the way he would if he was asking her to dance, she thought absently - and then she felt him.

She gasped, her eyes fluttering open and meeting his gaze. “I don’t know what to do,” she said, her breath catching in her throat.

He nodded but had already known that. “We don’t have to do this,” he said reassuringly to her, feeling another sharp intake of breath. “Ye can always change yer mind. I will never force ye to do anything ye do not wish to do, Melinda.”

She smiled, shaking her head. "I know. Will it hurt much?” She whispered.

“I think not if I take my time…” He reassured her and their lips met again, more eagerly this time as they fell into a rhythm together.

“May I touch you first...” She whispered and broke their kiss. “Down there?”

He nodded wordlessly and his eyes fell to where her hand slid down his chest and over his abdomen. Her fingers were unsure as she swept them over him and he gasped, his mouth falling open and his eyes closed. He stopped her before long, his eyes pleading and breathing heavy as he then gently pushed into her. There was some initial resistance, and he was tempted to pull back when she made a high noise of discomfort. But then a soft moan and a sudden heat made him change his mind.  


“Now move with me,” he whispered against her lips as he gradually settled over her, looking upon her face— her flushed neck, her teeth on her lower lip, the blush in her cheeks, the mess of her hair around her—and when he was fully seated, he buried his head in her neck and groaned, low in his throat.

Her hands wandered absently over his back, sending pleasure up and down his spine that made him twitch inside her. Her head rolled to the side and she kissed him on his cheek as she began to shift her hips against him, experimentally like he had told her to.

Her breath was heavy in his ear with want as he began to move against her, and all Jim could think of was that old song. He never wanted to leave this space between her thighs. She was caged in by his own body, which consumed every part of her. His breath was hot as he laid kisses to her neck, grunting as he moved inside of her, the lewd sounds of their lovemaking filling the room, as his flesh slapped against her own.

The bed groaned beneath them, but she cannot bring herself to care if anyone can hear them. She could tell that he was close, and she was right there with him. He was whispering her name as his fingers bite into her thighs and she clung to him for dear life. It’s maddening and the most exhilarating feeling. He spilled inside her with something between a shout and a bark rising from his throat.

He trembled in her arms and she wrapped her long, creamy legs around him. They were still wrapped together when he looked up into her face and brought his lips softly to hers before smoothing her hair out of her face. “Did I hurt you?”

“No,” she said, quietly. “I liked it. I love you, Jim.” The steady beat of his heart hummed beneath her ear as she kept her head cushioned against his chest.

“I love ye as well, Melinda,” he said. “In more ways than one.”

The events of the night before plagued her, and she cannot stop thinking about Gerald. It had been as though the entire purpose of his visit had been to antagonize his host.

“I do not understand what happened last night with William… why did he have to act like a fool?” She cut through the silence between them. “Why he trying to aggravate you?”

Jim frowned at her, but combed his hand through her tangled strands. “My cousin always defies comprehension. That’s why I warned ye to be careful. No one on this boat can be trusted if ye don’t know them, Melinda.”

It’s not the answer she was looking for, in fact, she was more than disappointed with his response. “Jim, I—”

“Don’t sulk, my love.” He said and interrupted her. “I told ye, I intend to share all of my secrets in the future. It may take some time.”


	3. Chapter 3

The Jaded Sapphire may have been small, but it held a certain sense of soulfulness that Jim had never felt from any other ship, perhaps it was simply due to the fact it was his, due to the fact he intimately knew every thread of rope in the rail lines, every inch of creaking floorboards, and every salt rusted rail holding the hull together. He’d spent the majority of his time on this ship since his father died and now as much as he loved it, he couldn’t wait to sail home with Melinda after the last two weeks on the water.

He was certain the vessel had a mind of its own at times, in moments like these when the sails would drop so easily, eagerly catching hold of any trace of wind it could find to carry its crew away from those that threatened to do them harm. It could be equally stubborn at times. For the sake of his reputation, he attempted to refrain from yelling and swearing at his boat in the instances where it refused to cooperate.

Jim could almost feel its quietening heart beating under his feet as he retreated to his cabin, a smile coming to his face as he saw his wife lounging on a sitting couch, quill in hand as she wrote on a piece of parchment.

"Who are ye writing?" he asked curiously, closing the door behind him.

"My sister," she replied, not looking up from where she continued to write.

As he crossed the room to come around behind her, he looked over her shoulder to examine the letter, but he couldn't understand the dialect or even the language of what it was she was writing in.

"Is that Latin?" He asked after looking over the words once more.

"Yes. Why do you ask? Do you wish to read my letter?” She asked, raising her eyebrows.

“No, I just—” He stuttered, losing his train of thought as he looked over her face. No one had ever made him feel this way before.

“Since you wish to know, I was telling her about you and how we should visit soon. After we go home to Scotland first," she teased him and then smiled.

“Home?” He asked.

“If it’s your home, Jim, then it’s mine now too,” she replied.

"Is that truly how ye feel?" he asked speechlessly.

Melinda decided to put the ink and quill down onto the small table in front of her. "Yes, of course. These past two weeks together have been paradise and I can’t see what more is to offer back in Scotland.”

Jim walked around the couch to where she sat, kneeling down so they were at eye-level. He gently cupped her cheek with his hand, reassuring her. "Ye are everything I could have ever dreamed of."

Embracing the hand on her cheek, she smiled and kissed his hand. "You are too kind, my love.”

"I love ye," he proclaimed. "Do ye hear me, Melinda? I love ye more than anything."

As he kissed her, he lifted her up off the chair and brought her to the bed. Then her tongue parted the seam of his mouth to seek his own. He drank from her, taking what she would give and giving himself to her in kind.  They barely parted for air, caught in the overwhelming current of need and desire.

Brow against his lips, she gasped when a hand slid up the side of her body to the ties of her dress, making her shudder when he grazed the curve of her breast. He exhaled against her temple before trailing the lightest of kisses down the side of her face to the slender length of her neck. She scratched at his clothed back, moaning as he licked at her pulse and nipped gently at it. The sting he soothed with the flat of his tongue, making her whimper.

Overcome. He was utterly overcome with her; the scent of lavender and soap and threatened to bowl him over in the most satisfying way as she moaned again, her breath husky and needy against the shell of his ear.  As one of his hands stayed her the other started working on unraveling her from the confines of her dress, his control and patience both arousing and frustrating when all he wanted was to feel his bare skin on hers, to feel the contours of his muscular form overpower her.

A guttural growl from him and they parted, making Melinda let out a breathy laugh at his sudden predicament.  "Let me," she whispered, aiding him in the effort as he knelt down and started unlacing her boots, and then his, a sudden urgency to his actions.

They kicked at their boots, the heavy thuds echoing inside the room.  The heady scent of her invaded his senses from where he knelt. It called out for his tongue, and as the top half of her dress slid down to pool at her feet, he pressed his face against her, hands grasping at the edges of the last article of clothing that shielded the top half of her body from him.

Melinda moaned his name, tugging at his hair so that she may relieve him of his own clothing as well. Before he allowed their mouths to meet, he drew her shift up and over her head. The heat of his gaze on her bare skin warmed her, made her crave him all the more.  Lost in the sight of her smooth and creamy skin, her pert breasts, and her dusky pink nipples pebbling, Jim growled, mouth-watering.

As his wife busied herself with removing the belt from his leather gambeson, he cupped a breast and tested its weight in his hand before squeezing gently and fondling the tip. Her breathing accelerated at his touch as she battled with the buckles on his clothing, so he continued his ministrations, another hand running from her back to the slope of her arse.

But God, her perfection was unequaled.

All buckles finally unhooked, the layer fell heavily, making her frown at him as she bemoaned, "Why must you wear so many layers?" Still, she worked at unlacing his jerkin before helping him pull it over his head.

Her voice was so husky and thick it tugged at his groin, his cock jerking in its confines. "It's cold in the north, Melinda," he teased, voice low and accent thick, a soft smile on his lips right before removing his tunic. "Ye shall learn that soon enough."

"We're not quite in the north yet," she mumbled before taking a moment to take in his battle-scarred chest and torso, her heart fiery with rage at the betrayal each scar stood for.

She knew the story, knew the battle he'd fought at Culloden and how he’d been spared execution for being a Jacobite by agreeing to marry her. It was against everything he knew to marry an outlander and yet he’d done it all the same, and here they were.  He watched as her fingers feathered over the one above his heart, seemingly afraid that touching him there would draw blood.

"Melinda, lass." He said, calling her back from where her thoughts have carried her.

He held onto her elbows and pulled her against him, skin on skin, upper halves free to touch and feel, to comfort.  A sigh ghosted against his neck and soon her lips were sucking at the spot. She hummed at the taste of the salt of his skin on her tongue, the musk that was uniquely this man. His fingers ran along her sides and her back and her nape, blood singing at the suction of her lips over his pulse. Never had he held such beauty in his arms, such softness, such majesty.

He towered over her, the small thing she was, but when he dipped his head her mouth slotted perfectly with his, exhaling through his nose as her tongue quickly coaxed his into the warm cave of her mouth, an invitation of her acceptance and her want for him. More than just warm, she was fire itself, scalding him raw and making him want to burn with her forever.

Hands slid down her back to her arse, and he lifted and turned, depositing her onto her back on the bed. When he looked down at her he was blown away by the look on her face and her eyes almost a dark brown, pupils fat with her arousal.  Emboldened, he pulled her closer to the edge of the bed and traversed the exquisite expanse of her soft skin with his hands. His breath caught at the sight of her, swollen and ripe and ready for his mouth, fingers, and his cock.

Thumbing at the trimmed patch of hair on her mound, he exhaled as a foot ran across his lower torso and he swallowed a groan when it slid down to caress his length, the twitch of it making her smile deviously, a cat's grin making her look positively lethal.  It was all he could take before stripping himself free of all other clothing he still wore, and then dropping to his knees before her, he pulled her arse to the edge of the bed and feasted upon her.

Melinda wasn’t expecting the action and Jim’s chest swelled with pride at her muted shriek of pleasure as he introduced his tongue to her slit, fingers and nails suddenly raking through his hair and nape.  Her nectar blessed him in bountiful waves as his fingers parted her and his tongue mercilessly lashed at her again and again and again, and he lapped at her flowing wetness like it was the only thing that could sate his thirst.

Magnificent and glowing, her skin awash with a mist of dew, she thrashed beneath his grip, her hips undulating to receive more. Her stomach was clenching and unclenching as he burrowed his mouth into her, savoring her taste. Sweet and rich and salty, she was a flavor his tongue would always crave.

A barely stifled whimper tore past her lips when he inserted a finger into her, rubbing at the ridges within her, driving her mad. Another finger, the wetness of his mouth, and the skill of his tongue, and she was coming violently, fluid leaking from within her depths, and his tongue and lips readily lapped all she gave as she rode the waves of her climax.

Easing her from it as he pet her, smattering kisses over her hips, the insides of her thighs, and her navel. He would never stop basking in his love for her. Never.

She reveled in the attention, delicious tremors rocking her still. Rising on her forearms their eyes met over her heaving breasts, and she beckoned him to her with trembling fingers scratching affectionately at his bristly jaw.

Having plans of his own, Jim pressed his lips to her palm before lowering his head to the sensitive skin above her navel, and then kissed his way up her torso. Reaching the underside of a breast, he moved from one to the other and mouthed each hardened peak, the quiet gasps from her lips fueling his efforts the same way the taste and smell and sight of her did.

Sliding a hand behind her, he moved them further up the bed until her head rested on a pillow. The moment it did his lips were claimed and his name was moaned into his mouth when insistent hands pulled at his head, and he was driven insane by the way she seemed to savor her own essence as she kissed him.

Soon they grew more fervent, more passionate, and he reciprocated, teeth on flesh and tongue on tongue, giving and taking and surrendering to the whirlwind that was the unknown, the power of whatever this was.

In a quick roll, he was pushed onto his back, but she did not straddle him, merely fell off to his side and slung a leg over his, her warmth notched against his hip, setting him on fire where he felt her. Their kiss resumed, lips slipping and sliding over one another in a suddenly hurried dance with her leading as though time was not on their side, like this fragile connection they've just found would all but disintegrate into the wind.

Heart pounding in her chest, she tilted her head to kiss him fiercely, her husband, the mystery man she never thought she’d find herself falling for so soon. She sighed into his mouth, lust, and desire and need evident in the thrum of her heart and in her loins.  With a hand splayed high up her back, Jim stroked her gently, his other brushing the side of her face and her temple until he could stay and anchor her to him, keep her and her thoughts tethered to where they were, what they were doing, what they were starting.

He chased her lips when she seemingly drew back, latching onto her bottom lip and tugging while a hand calmed him by running all over his side and his stomach. His muscles fluttered wherever she touched, and his cock jerked at the lack of attention.

They had tonight, and whatever days remained until they made their first port to gather more supplies. Then a smooth sailing journey to Scotland was ahead of them and all he could imagine there was happiness.

Parting for air, Jim pressed his temple against hers, his eyes closed as he breathed her in and reclaimed her mouth.  At the press of their chests together and the feel of her warmth rubbing against him, he flipped them over and situated himself better between her thighs. One hand supporting her upper back he cradled the crown of her head reverently and, without thinking, licked at her mouth as he brushed fingers against her neck.

Her mouth parted for him as one hand gripped his bicep, anchoring herself to him. Sweat dewed where their skin touched, and he was lost in the heat of her body and the sight of her mussed up beneath him.  She was so ready for him, he could feel it where his cock pressed against her, and in the next heartbeat, he slid one hand to the back of her knee and spread her further for him as he thrust into her in one long slide, the action driving her up the bed.

Blunted nails dug into his skin and splayed over his back as she gasped breathlessly, her walls gripping him so tight his eyes screwed shut. He leaned his brow against hers as she rippled deliciously around him, making him quiver at the sensation, and he kissed her hard as he gave her a moment to adjust to him.  When he pulled away, her eyes slowly opened to look at him with such softness that gave him pause. There was a look on her face that spoke of something he daren’t name, a look of such awe and dawning realization that he loved to see.

It was unreal, touching her, sweeping her hair with his thumb, like melted chocolate slipping through his calloused hand.

He had no words, could not think of anything to say that could lighten the moment, but the weight of it was already over them like a heavy cloak, so he dipped his head and sought the comfort of her mouth, their lips fitting like she was made for him. She caressed the curve of his jaw as they lose themselves in the act.

A small smile blossomed on her lips right before he did, he was certain, but he didn’t care to think more of it, choosing instead to drown himself in the taste and feel of her, the quiet moans and gasps his cock drew from her throat as he resumed pulling out and pushing back inside of her, his hips rolling against the cradle of hers like the waves their boat rode against.

Jim soon drew her further up the bed and she hitched her legs up and around his hips, admitting him deeper. A hand on the small of her back he resumed his pace, unyielding in the power of his thrusts, feeling himself swell thicker and harder as he plowed into her depths and fed from her stifled cries of ecstasy.  Red scores bloomed across his back as she raked her nails against his skin while her mouth lavished his jaw and his neck with small bites and kisses and licks of her tongue.

Along with her mounting pleasure, her voice rose, and he panted as he took one of her pebbled peaks into his mouth, groaning at the taste of her skin and the salt of her sweat and the hardening of her nipple with each pass of his tongue. Small hands pulled him harder against her breast, and hips bucked to receive him yet again, actively encouraging his efforts.

They were damp where they were joined, and he let go of her nipple to watch himself disappear into her. The sight too erotic, he snapped his head back to her for a fevered kiss, a hard jut of his hips along with it making her cry out, the loud slap of flesh against flesh making his ears ring as she panted into his mouth. 

Melinda rasped his name in a quiet cry, fingers finally pulling at the tie that bound his hair. Black tendrils unraveled, and she enjoyed the softness, smiling drunkenly up at him as her fingers toyed with his curls.  Jim gazed into brown eyes stormy with desire, her beauty never failed to make his heart stop momentarily as he took her in, tousled and positively wrecked.

“Jim, I love you,” she said again, nearly a purr that stroked his spine like a sweet caress.

Softly, he kissed her, watching her quiver at the scrape of his beard against her well-abraded skin. She did not seem to mind, latching onto his upper lip before inviting his tongue into her mouth.

"Melinda,” he groaned, feeling her free hand press and pull at his arse to get him back to work. “Oh, how I love ye as well, lass.”  One hand reclaiming its place at the small of her back and another on her nape, he lifted her slightly and thrust hard, continuing what he had started, restarting a dizzying rhythm that stole her breath and kept her blind and mute to everything but where they were joined and her cresting release

Quaking within his embrace, she lifted her head and dug her fingers and nails on his back, her mouth and teeth latching onto his shoulder as she surrendered to the strength of another climax.  With soothing hushes he grounded her with his weight. Right before she settled, he drew his upper half from her, aiming to make her come one last before he took his. Fingers joining the fray, he thumbed at her swollen pearl, spreading her wetness as he guided himself back inside her.

The sounds of their coupling were intoxicating, the sound of him making love to her, and the sounds he made as she purposely squeezed him within her clasp driving her closer to the edge.  Through half-lidded eyes he watched as she threw her head back against the pillow, writhing in pleasure and pulling at the sheets, her breasts swaying with every stroke of his cock.

With one hard push into the edge of her, she came apart before his eyes, wondrous and a sight to behold, her sex fluttering around his cock. He groaned, folding over her with his forearms braced on either side of her.  As her shudders eased her lips found his and they kissed tenderly, overwhelmed by the emotions their union has roused. When their eyes met, she gave him one last kiss before pulling his face to space where her neck and shoulder met, rolling her hips up to receive him, wordlessly urging him to finish.

She was wrapped around him, and Jim ground his pelvis against hers, rutting madly against her as she cried her pleasure into the humid room, orgasm finding her one last time as he finally did, the damp curtain of his hair and hers comforting as his body tightened.  Unsteady hands gripped at his arse and pulled him deeper into her with one last thrust, and when he hit the entrance to her womb, buried inside her to the hilt, he groaned, exhaling hotly against her neck as he spilled into her.

Jim panted as he rocked against her, prolonging their pleasure and recovering from the mind-numbing experience. He kissed her neck, the shell of her ear, everything his mouth could reach with whatever strength he had left.  There was calm silence in the aftermath, their heavy breathing the only sounds to be heard. He lifted his head to gaze upon her and was heartened by the soft smile that touched her lips.

Returning it, he sought to have it widened with a sweet kiss, and another, and another, until they parted from air and he withdrew from her, his cock slipping out of her and trailing his seed and her essence against her thigh, their mess sticky and abundant.  Jim pulled her against him as he lay on his back, his chest swelling when she settled an ear above his heart.

He held her hand in his as his other drew circles across her back.  He pressed a kiss to the crown of her head, wondering if he should aid her in undoing her braids before she drifted off. In mere moments her light snores could be heard, and a small smile tugged at his lips at the sound before he fell into a slumber.

* * *

When Melinda opened her eyes, she noticed three things: she did not sleep for too long, a dull ache between her legs that was more pleasurable than painful, and the weight of Jim’s arm wrapped around her from behind now that she had rolled off of his chest.

His snores whispered lightly against her ear, drawing a smile from her lips at the memory of their coupling. Turning her head to gaze upon his features, no brooding frown pulling it down, she enjoyed the sight of him in their bed, relaxed and lost in the clutches of sleep.

She nestled close to his face, the scrape of his light beard against her cheek now a familiar sensation that comforted her heart. Soon enough the pull of her braids and the push of the pins on her head demanded she unburdened her hair and let it down. Begrudgingly, she peeled herself from the solid strength and warmth of her husband’s form and set her feet on the wooden floor.

Damp where he’d spilled earlier that night, a small smile graced her features and she turned back to the man responsible for her current state, heart full and already longing though he lay before her. She admired his form for a quick moment, need slowly growing at the pit of her stomach at the sight of him.

If she didn’t have to unbind her hair she would have taken him into her mouth and awaken him like that, but her head was already aching from the cumbersome bun. With a resigned sigh she covered him up with a fur blanket and tucked a lock of hair that had fallen over his eyes before getting up and heading to the basin to clean the mess between her legs.

Not allowing her mind to linger on the issue of giving Jim a child long, Melinda swiftly cleaned up and sat down on the chair before the small bureau and the looking glass.

If his seed took root… she thought with a smile on her face. She would be happy. She was overjoyed at the thought of her belly swelling big with their child more than once and couldn’t wait for the day when they had a family together.

Naked as her name day, she ignored the chill in the room and went about removing the pins that kept her hair in place, wincing when she pulled and strands went along, snapping at the roots. The task long and tedious, she allowed her thoughts to instead drift to the day’s events, recalling watching Jim as he took hold of the wheel for most of the day. She had sat with him on deck and read, enjoying the breeze and silent company of being with each other.

She smiled at the memory of his hair moving in the breeze, strong arms holding control of the ship and smile on his face. Her desire was fueled by the sight of him on the bed reflected in the looking glass and her eyes took notice of the marks low on her clavicle and her chest, arousal gripping her yet again. 

Transfixed, her hand touched the blooming marks, the sight of them enough to make her close her eyes and moan at the memory of how he’d given them. Expelling a heavy breath, she looked at her reflection, noting the blush high on the apples of her cheeks and the sudden joy that filled her heart shining through her eyes.

She loved him, she knew that now more than ever. He was in their bed, fast asleep, yet her heart longed to be back in his arms, be wrapped up in him, safe and cherished.

Cold hands cupped the caps of her shoulders and she jumped, turning to see Jim right behind her, naked as she was, a timid smile on his lips as he apologized for startling her. She glared at him momentarily before she was appeased by the pressure of his hands over her shoulders, not quite a massage but relaxing nonetheless.

“Let me help,” he offered, echoing her words from earlier, his northern burr a balm to her heart now. She nodded her consent and watched as he set about the task he has taken on, eyeing his many scars and admiring his sculpted form in the mirror.

Together they unbraided and unpinned her hair until it all fell straight over her shoulders and her back, and Melinda smiled fondly as she looked at him marvel at it. Without prompting he took the hairbrush on the bureau and started detangling the knots in her hair until they were tamed.

“If I didn’t know any better, I would say you’ve been doing this for many a lady, Jim Clancy,” she teased, looking at him even though her gut churned as she awaited his response.

“I’ve only ever done it for my sister,” he grinned, unbothered by the act, a smile blossoming on his handsome face as he resumed brushing her hair.

“Tell me more about your family. How did I not know you had a sister?” she requested, closing her eyes at the stroke of the brush and the feel of his hands massaging her scalp as he went, soothing the aches of having her hair pinned up for so long. She must commend Andrea for how well her hair held up throughout her days… activities. 

“What are you grinning about?” He tutted, smirking.

Ignoring him, she hummed and prompted him to continue about how his sister, whose name was Rose and did not like to be called her proper title. “Her name suits her fine, she would always say,” he said, grinning as though lost in the recollection as she just was.

He continued on with his stories about the three siblings he had. Daniel, Rose, and his bastard brother Robert. He shared with her freely the good and the bad. She let him carry on brushing her hair, noticing how it helped him focus his thoughts on something as he pried the recesses of his mind for whatever joy he’d experienced in his childhood.

So many misadventures he’d had with them, especially Daniel and Robert, but she could tell from his voice a fondness for his sister, Rose. He wanted her to like them, it seemed.

Her heart swelled when he told her exactly just that. “You will like them,” he chuckled, “We’ve all gone through a lot, it’s true. But the siblings I knew are still within, just hardened, like my people.”

Seeing him in this light, the brotherly side of him, made her fall harder, made her want to know him more than she already did.

“I am sure I will. Daniel has already proven to be a great company,” she said, taking the brush from his hands and turning on the bench to hold both his hands in hers. “One can hope you will share the same thoughts about my sister,” she breathed, pulling at him so he may be at her level. “She can be a little… feisty.”

“I wonder who she picked that from, lass,” he chuckled, and she caressed the scar that ran across his cheek, returning the smile though shaking her head at his foolish, stubborn beliefs.

“What are you saying, hmm?” she kissed the crown of his head, pressing her brow to his. She paused, took a breath and looked into his eyes, willingly drowning in the pools of blue

He looked at her with such light that her eyes nearly watered from the strength of his belief in her. Would that he could fully see the same emotions he aroused in her, feel that she too had faith in him.

“Let’s go to bed, Mel,” he rasped, peppering kisses across her chest and neck before seeking her mouth.

She mourned the loss when he pulled away, drawing her towards the bed as he walked backward.

Eyes growing dark and hooded, he smiled brightly at her, whispering to her, “The night is young, and I want you again.”

* * *

Without the sun, Melinda was reduced to an outline. Jim sat up in bed as he tried to trace her frame with his fingertips - her soft buttocks tucked beneath a thin blanket, her warm stomach, her taut breasts, her cold hair, her wet lips. He pressed his thumb to them, just hard enough so that he could feel them part and her front teeth nip at his skin. She was asleep, he knew, her breathing across his hand warm and steady, deep like the water on which they sailed. She was asleep. 

_ How I long for you to wake. _

Something in him was stirring. Need. It was a feeling he did not know how to handle. Selflessness, that was the way of man. His father had made sure to instill that in all his children. The need was something else. The need did not follow God, or laws, or abide by morals. The need was animalistic, something that brewed in all men and should be denied all the same. The need caused men to take the black when they could no longer fight their own senses. The need was ugly.

_ Yet it leads me to you _ , Jim thought, his fingertips stroking across his wife’s small nose, past her brows, into her hair. He let the locks slip between his fingers, like streams of melted chocolate. So perhaps his father was wrong.  _ Selflessness on its own had killed good men. Perhaps need will keep me alive a little longer. _

He took hold of the blanket and drew it further up as he slipped closer to her. He could smell her. He could smell them together; sweat, salty like the ocean, a taste of metal on his tongue from where he bit down to stay quiet. When he dragged his thumb across her closed lids, he remembered how she tasted. He remembered how she looked when he was inside her.

_ When men of his homelands speak of the English, they speak of harsh people _ , he thought, slipping his fingers down her cheeks to her chin.  _ If only they knew how gentle the truth is _ .

Her eyes fluttered open, and for a moment Jim was frozen in place. Even in the dark, her gaze was piercing - it bound him, commanded his attention.

He felt his lips go dry. He licked them and cleared his throat. “Sorry, did I wake ye?” he asked, dropping his hand from her face. He turned on the pillow, allowing himself to face her completely as they laid side by side. “I didn’t mean to. I just-”

“Kiss me.” That was all she said, her voice a whisper, hoarse from having just awoken.

Her hands reached for him beneath the blanket, grabbed at his arms and pulled him around her. He slipped on top of her, his face hovering just above hers, their breaths mingling. Her naked body was warm. As he felt her stir beneath him, that overwhelming feeling of need crept back.

“Kiss me, Jim,” she spoke again, her hands grabbing at his face.

He leaned in and kissed her. Her lips were soft, and they soon wet his own as the kiss deepened. He wanted her. In the kiss, he took it all - her breath, her taste, her tongue against his, the outline of her teeth, the sound of her gasps. He took it all as he pressed himself down onto her, covering her, taking her bare body under his protection.

_ I need you _ , he thought,  _ I need you so much. _

Every time he broke the kiss for air, all he could hear was her soft voice urging: “Kiss me. Touch me. Take me.” He must have kissed her a thousand times that night, but with every kiss, his mind cleared a little, and it dawned on him.

_ I need you. Yes, I need you so much _ .  _ And need does not follow gods or laws or morals, and it’s animalistic and dangerous all at once, but it is also pure. _ When he finally broke long enough to watch her face, both of them gasping for air, looking at each other, he thought,  _ Perhaps that is real selflessness. To need someone so much that everything else melts away. _

At dawn, they melted into one once more.


	4. Chapter 4

“Good morning.”

The words were barely spoken against her wet lips and Melinda’s hands were in his hair, his locks twisted around her fingers. Her body, warm against his, one leg swung over his own. Her breath, damp, traveling down his face, making him flush. Her eyes were closed, the tips of her eyelashes brushing against his skin as she kissed him.

Good morning didn’t do it justice in Jim’s mind. Great morning, perhaps. Fantastic morning, even. His mind quieted for a moment as she pulled back and smiled down at him, her brown hair like a messy mane around her naked face as she yawned, dropped to the side and collapsed back into the sheets, disappearing out of sight. He never wanted this morning to end.

The room was warm, and he breathed out as he slowly sat up in bed, letting his gaze wander. Their cabin was grand for a trading ship he’d inherited when his father died and had never really gotten acquainted with it. He admired the old oak table in the corner, the bookcases filled to the brim with more scrolls to read than most learned men managed in a lifetime, the carved cabinet with the door slightly ajar, just letting him have sight of blue silk and deep purple.

Then, the window. He pulled one leg up and rested against his knee as he glanced outside. He could just make out the sky above the water. Above, it was dark, but when his eyes traveled to the horizon, he could see the colors brighten. Brilliant orange and red and yellow.  _ Odd _ , he pondered, glancing back toward Melinda.

She was peeking out from above the duvet, her eyes following his every move, and he couldn’t help but smile. Never before has he so longed to see the sunset again.

“Is it truly morning?” she asked, her voice muffled by the fabric.

“Afraid so, lass,” he admitted.

She sighed. “Does that mean you have to go up on deck?” She asked innocently.

Jim raised his brows in surprise. “Why do you ask?”

“Because,” she spoke, slowly lowering the duvet down until he could see the depths of her collarbone, “I have never been so keen for it to be dark again.” Her statement caught him off guard, and as he didn’t immediately follow with a reply, she flushed and shook her head. “Forget it. I spoke in error.”

“Melinda,” he started, but she merely kept shaking her head.

“It’s nothing. I should call for Andrea,” she said, although she didn’t make any move to leave the bed. She was tugging at the duvet, her fingers closing and releasing the fabric, again and again, causing it to crinkle around them like waves.

“Is something wrong?” He asked, glancing over his shoulder at her. “Was it something I did?”

Melinda’s fingers closed once again, but this time remained so. Her gaze was focused on something indistinct in front of her. She looked thoughtful. “No. It was nothing you did, Jim. You’re wonderful,” she said slowly as if she was tasting every word as she spoke it. “My sister has been on my mind since I received that letter for her. I only worry about her.”

“I may not be well versed in the matters of being a sister,” he said, “but I do have one. Maybe I can be of help?”

Melinda had to smile at his words. She sighed and leaned her head back, closing her eyes as she did so. “Oh, but that’s where you’re wrong, my husband. You don’t know what it’s like to marry someone thrice your age. She’s miserable and her letter told me that and then some. I worry for her, Jim.”

“That doesn’t seem reasonable. Why would yer uncle marry her to someone like that?” He asked, shaking his head.

“My uncle is old and unmarried. The male line of the Gordon’s will die with him if he doesn’t have a family.” With her eyes still closed, Melinda took a few deep breaths. “He wanted to marry my sister and he had begged my father on his deathbed after I refused. My father told him the same thing he had with me. It was Katherine’s choice and she didn’t want to marry him. She was still young and my father hadn’t had the time before he died to find someone else so the matter was left to my uncle and he did what he did out of spite to her.”

Jim listened, his eyes on Melinda as she chose her words with care, and it almost hurt his heart to listen. Not because of what she said, but what she didn’t say. He could tell from her face that there was something more. Something that brought her shame and guilt.

“Melinda,” he said and she finally opened her eyes. “I was there was something I could do to help ease yer worries about yet sister.” She was eyeing the ceiling, but he could tell she was listening.

“I don’t know if you can,” she said, her voice slightly trembling.

He reached over and grabbed her hands in his own, and she finally looked at him. For a second, neither of them spoke. They just looked into each others’ eyes. “Ye showed courage in marrying me without knowing anything but my name.”

A sad smile played on her lips. He reached up to stroke her cheek and, as she leaned into his touch, he smiled gently. “You’re a strange man,” she whispered.

“You make me so,” he said, and he leaned in to kiss her.

At first, it was gentle. Like a peck on the lips of an acquaintance. But then, it grew softer, deeper. Jim held her at the cheek whilst his other hand sought her waist, and Melinda’s once more grabbed a hold of his black locks. Their lips grew wet. Between their tongues, warm breathing, and desperate shuffling to get closer, their kiss was growing sloppy. But neither of them seemed to mind.

Soon, he was atop of her, and they were both sinking beneath the warm, dark duvet. Perhaps, if they used their imagination, they could make believe that neither of them had noticed the sunrise. Perhaps, they could make believe that it was still night. Young, in love, eager, keen, somewhat insecure, yet certain. Desperate and patient. Willing and hesitant. All at once. Morning and night. Opposites, yet synonyms, because how could one live without the other?

As Jim embraced Melinda, as he pressed so close he could feel her heartbeat echo his, he thought,  _ Love, is courage. Yet loving you is the least daring thing I have ever done. It is natural. It is pure. _

_ It is right. _

* * *

Jim started at her neck; his nose pushed in between her brown locks, his lips at her soft nape, the kisses trailing down the top of her spine. Her shoulders were bare, and his fingertips slipped across them as his face lowered, seeking deeper into the plunge of her open dress.

Melinda sighed and arched her neck as his lips didn’t stop. “I asked you to do the buttons up,” she reminded him.

His fingers brushed across the soft buttons as he pulled the fabric further apart. “Perhaps,” he spoke, glancing up her back toward her face. She was peering over her shoulder down at him, but though she tried to remain stern, there was a slight smile playing on her lips. “Perhaps, but ye did not tell me when to do them up.”

“Jim, I didn’t take you for one to linger on my words.” She muttered.

“Only when it’s to my advantage,” he spoke, his own eyes gleaming mischievously.

Another day, another time to break their fast in the small room attached to the kitchen on the ship. “We can send for our meals to be brought to us. No one would say anything.”

“People will talk about why aren’t there,” she said and shrugged her shoulders to get Jim off her. “Please, Jim, don’t have me call in my chambermaid.”

“As ye wish, my love. We will break our fast with the rest of the folks on the ship,” he said, his lips still on her skin, but he complied.

He slowly pushed the buttons into the hooks of her dress until her back was fully covered. The red silk fell softly between his hands as he stroked through the fabric of her skirt. Soft like water, red like fire, he thought, it suited her. Melinda turned in front of the mirror, satisfied that Jim had truly listened to her and pulled away, seating herself on the edge of the bed as she started tying up her shoes.

“I am sorry,” she spoke, throwing him an honest look of regret, “I wish we could stay, it’s just— even if we are newly married and it can be forgiven… I don’t like to be talked about like gossip.”

“I understand, Melinda,” he said. “Ye needn’t explain yerself to me ever. Unless I ask.”

“You appreciate duty,” she spoke with a smile, her lips only turning into a grimace as she continued to struggle with a leather strap.

_ Duty was only one of many things I enjoy _ , Jim thought. He watched her for a moment before shaking his head with a slight smile. “Let me help,” he offered as he walked over to her.

Melinda pulled her hands away and leaned back onto the edge of the bed frame as he knelt next to her and started tying her boots. “I can get Andrea in here,” she spoke. “My husband, sharing a bed and our souls does not mean you have to share in all I do.”

“But it might mean that I want to,” he pointed out. “There. All finished.” He held up her booted foot as if presenting it to her, and she let out a laugh.

“My dashing lord husband, you should’ve been a chambermaid,” she teased.

“Is the position available?” he asked, taking a hold of her other foot. He placed a soft kiss to her ankle and, as she didn’t pull away, placed a few more up across her shin.

Melinda shivered lightly and wriggled her toes. “Oh, I don’t know. Andrea is a fine one and a close friend at that,” she said and grabbed a hold of the bed frame with one hand as she leaned forward slightly to look down at him. “I would need someone who can cater to my every need. I fear men of the North may be too, mhmm, strong-minded to last.”

Jim smirked to her skin as he pushed his nose just below the fabric of her dress. “Knowing you,” he said, looking up at her, “I’d say you’d need a strong mind to last!”

She wrinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue at him, but she chuckled as he pushed his head further beneath her skirt, his kisses wet. “You’d never last!” she said. “You’re too cheeky.”

Jim was still holding her foot in his hands. As she started wriggling, he pushed his fingertips into the soft tissue of her sole, massaging gently. It calmed her down, and through the thin fabric, he could see the shadow above him disappear as she fell back into bed, allowing him to kiss all the way up past her knee.

“Oh, that’s nice,” she breathed, her toes wiggling some more.

“Aye, I may be a bit cheeky,” he said, breathing hotly onto her thigh as he tickled her soft skin with his beard. “But at least I’m not easily distracted.”

For a moment, Melinda’s body stiffened, and then she started moving all at once - she kicked her foot out from between his hands, and she pushed his face down her leg in such a hurry that he tumbled back to sit on the floor. 

“Jim, I can’t believe you!” She huffed, practically stumbling out of bed to stand and fix her dress in a few quick movements. Her cheeks were red and her gaze going everywhere as she looked for whatever she might have forgotten.

“So I’m not getting the position then?” He asked innocently as he watched her flounder around the room. 

She took in a deep breath, clearly composing herself, then looked back over her at him. Her lips were pulled in a fine line of annoyance, but her eyes were heavy with something else. “Let’s go eat, hmm?”

“Fine,” he said, standing and walking towards her. “We can eat. Not sure how good it will be. We are running low on food and spices. Only a few days from port though.” He unlatched the door and opened it for her, following her and closing it behind them.

“Will we have enough to last?” She asked, taking his arm as they walked down the slim hallway and the boat swayed suddenly under their feet.

“Steady enough to walk on yer own feet, lass?” He asked, holding her steady. “Or do ye need me to carry ye?”

“I might if the boat sways like that again. Thank you for offering,” she said, catching his gaze as they walked carefully together the rest of the way.

* * *

The Jaded Sapphire sailed under the rise and fall of two more days before it arrived at its first port under the murky cover of night. Though they hadn't needed to.

Jim was seated near the map table, holding the parchment in his hands as he was soon joined by Melinda. He’d left their room before she had awoken that morning. He’d gone up above to help his men sail into port before going below to assess what he needed to get for the ship and plan the rest of the voyage home.

Kincardine, technically a burgh in itself, was actually no bigger than a large port city. It was prosperous in itself for the people of the town since the city had warmly opened its arms (and its port) to the defilement of the black market.

And naturally, like flies to a rotting corpse, pirates had descended in hoards to haggle their merchandise or even to settle down amongst the locals until there was almost no trace left of the original Kincardainian bloodline.

That had been over two hundred years ago. The city, despite being ostracized from the rest of the world, had continued to grow in wealth and size, the bones of which had outgrown the land it sat on and had begun spilling out onto the water.

Half of the city kept out of reach of the high tide by a foundation of wooden beams, wonky bridges and an innate stubbornness that seemed to breathe through every part of the old port town.

Yet despite its chaotic reputation, it was one of the few places that managed to host pirates and their ships with relative harmony. To sail here was to voluntarily raise a white flag, a rare place where captains would put aside their differences and allow themselves to drink to a strange sense of comradery. However, they still needed to be careful. He wouldn’t forgive himself if something happened to Melinda.

He looked up as the door to the small captain’s office creaked as it opened, and his wife entered. She gave him a small smile before she closed the door behind her then walked toward him and sat in the chair beside him.

“What has you brooding this morning?” she questioned.

He heaved a sigh and placed the map back on the table with the others. “Thinking about how I will chart the journey home, lass. Did ye break yer fast?” 

She shook her head and was silent for a moment before she heaved a great sigh. “Once I heard we’d docked, I decided to wait.”

He nodded and glanced back over the map, but only momentarily before she cleared throat and caught his attention again. He raised his eyes to see her staring at him. “Is there something ye’d like to get off yer chest?”

“There was something I’ve been meaning to discuss with you. It’s not something I want to bring up in bed, but now that we’ve reached port I was wondering if maybe we could spend the night on dry land? My feet ached to be on solid ground for even a day.”

He sat up in his chair. “I suppose we can if ye wish to.”

“I do,” she replied.

“Then we shall,” he said with a wink and then turned his gaze to look over the maps again.

She turned his face back towards her and she pressed their lips together in a chaste kiss. He slowly took his hand in hers as he let the map settle against the table in front of him. “Thank you,” she said as the door opened and his brother, Daniel, entered.

He stopped near the door however as he looked at them. “Am I interrupting?”

Jim smirked against her lips as they parted, and he turned to look at his brother. “Would you care if you were?” He asked.

His brother shrugged. “Not particularly. The others were all in the hall breaking their fast. They’ll be going into the city soon. You were missed, brother.”

Melinda caught his gaze momentarily, her stance a few days prior confirmed that they were indeed the gossip of the ship for missing a meal. She stood at the map table and pointed at a course that would give them a clear channel to where they needed to land near Edinburg. “That could work,” he said as he turned his brother out and spoke to his wife. “I’ll look into it. Shall I meet ye up on deck and can go into the market together?”

“That sounds like a fine idea,” she said, leaning down to kiss his cheek. “See you above shortly.” She made her way out, sharing a smile with his brother. “Morning, Daniel.”

“Good morning,” Daniel returned before closing the door behind her.

“What do ye wish to speak with me about?” He asked, leaning back into his chair.

“Do ye take course suggestions from yer… wife?” Daniel asked, now that they were alone.

“If I do, it’s not any of yer damn business.” He replied harshly and his blood boiled as his brother spoke about his wife in that way. He had to quell his urge not to rip his throat out.“That’s not what ye came to speak to me about. Spit it out.”

“I have collected a list of everything we need,” Daniel bought a piece of parchment to his grasp and he looked over it.

Before diving into the city, he needed a comprehensive list of everything that the ship and its sailors might require over the last few weeks of the journey; food, weapons, gunpowder, cloth to repair the sails should they get damaged (again). He hoped his pocket would cover everything.

They could always resort to fishing if the rations ran out too soon, it wouldn't have been the first time. But the crew and passengers had a tendency to get irritable when living on fish for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for weeks on end, and Jim would rather avoid that and any other trouble he could.

“Thank ye. Go up and check on everything, brother. I have some things I need to put away first before coming up on deck,” he said, waving him away and to give him some time to gather his things before going above as well.

Once his brother left, Jim gathered the maps together and put them away before returning to his cabin for a few minutes. He pulled his cloak onto his shoulders before fetching one of the few pouches of gold coins he had brought for the journey, along with a letter for Melinda’s sister that had been sitting on his desk for the last few days.

After making sure to have everything he needed, he went above and met Melinda on deck. She was waiting against the railing, wind in her hair and as beautiful as ever. Her dress was thick wool, keeping her warm against the chilly sea air.

She looked out over the water at the small fishing village that was just waking up, wringing her hands for warmth. He wound a scarf around her neck, “stay warm, lass,” he cautioned. Melinda’s hands curled in her gloves and she leaned back into him. She was already chilled. 

She stopped the movement of her hands. She had never liked traveling north as a child, or so she had told him. The constant cold went against her warm nature. He thought she might have to walk into a fire to actually get warm enough for her own comfort.

“How can someone stay warm here?” She pulled on the scarf to sit more comfortably over the top of her shoulders and around her neck.

“Ye stay close to the one ye love,” he whispered against the shell of her ear and then pressed a chaste kiss to her cheek.

“I like the sound of that, but not the cold.” She said, turning her head to brush their faces against each other’s. “What is the plan for today?”

“A short ride into the town,” he explained. There is some business to take care of, but the Inn my family frequents when we are in Kincardine. Ye dinna need to worry a bit, tis a safe establishment.”

She nodded, smiling. “I look forward to setting my feet on solid ground.”

“Let’s get moving then, lass,” he said, nudging her away from the side of the boat.


	5. Chapter 5

The ride from the docks to the Inn was short as Jim had told Melinda and she itched to get inside, out of the breezy weather. Dismounting from their horses, a stableboy took the reins, heading toward the stables at the back of the building. Melinda glanced up, seeing a wooden shingle with a goat wearing a kilt and kicking up its heels, or hooves in this case. Her husband took her arm, leading her into the taproom.

The Inn was already near claustrophobically packed by the time they arrived. A motley mix of pirates and local families passing stories back and forth through alcohol loosened lips as if the tales were a form of currency.

It wasn’t unusual for an Inn to be so busy, especially if it had become one of the most popular places in the whole city for those seeking half-decent drinks and somewhere to sleep that was only a tad less uncomfortable than the hammocks most of them were used to suffering with. It was borderline luxurious for pirates.

In front of a very large fireplace with a roaring fire, a middle-aged woman looked up from her sewing, a wide smile blooming across her face as she moved swiftly towards them. “Lord James, dinna think ye would be gracing us with yer presence again so soon. Looks like ye could use a good washing and a bit of rest.”

“Aye Mrs. Drummond, it’s been a long journey, but a welcome one,” Jim said happily, a bright smile on his face as he turned to her and took hold of her hand. He brought her closer to him and wrapped his arm around her waist. “This is my wonderful wife, Melinda. We are needing a meal and warm room for tonight, some warm water for washing and if possible a new shift for my wife to sleep in. We will be looking for some warmer, more-suitable clothing for her tomorrow as this is one of the only ones she has.”

Mrs. Drummond’s eyes scanned Melinda from top to bottom, taking in her appearance and shape from what she could. She wore many more petticoats than usual to keep warm and jutted out from her figure a bit more than usual. The woman turned to Jim. “Oh, how wonderful. I heard a rumor ye were to be married but never thought you would.” Then she glanced back at Melinda. “I believe I might have just what you need. My niece, may she rest in peace, was about yer size, just a bit shorter. The foolish girl got herself thrown from a horse a few months past. Told her not to ride that blasted devil.”

Melinda reached out and touched her hand seeing the tears well up in Mrs. Drummond’s eyes. “I’m so very sorry for your loss. I appreciate any help you can offer.”

A look of surprise overtook Mrs. Drummond’s face, “An Englishwoman, I must say I’m surprised ye’ve married an outlander.”

She turned to him, “Maybe this wasn’t the best idea, to bring me here.”

“Now Mrs. Drummond, Melinda may be English, but she has no allegiance to any of the English who run in these parts. She is a respectable woman and my wife, may I remind ye.” He said, his voice firm. “Perhaps we should find lodging elsewhere.” 

“No, no,” Mrs. Drummond stammered, “I am sorry for any offense, milord, I was just taken aback is all. Please forgive me, let me see about yer arrangements. Have a seat and I’ll get some food out to ye’ll shortly.” The woman bustled away, disappearing through a door behind the large wooden bar.

Jim and Melinda moved to a table close to the heat of the fire. The occupants of the room eyeing them as they walked past. The outside door opened and in came Jim’s brother, Daniel, who scanned the room, walked to the bar, ordered three whiskeys and joined them at the table.

The three sat sipping quietly, letting the warmth of the spirit infuse their tired bodies. Soon, they were digging into three bowls of lamb stew with fresh warm bannocks on the side. Melinda had never tasted anything more heavenly in her entire life and by the speed at which it was devoured, she knew Jim and Daniel were of the same mind.

Mrs. Drummond approached the table, “you have the last two rooms at the end of the hall on the right. There’s warm water in both rooms and I have a clean shift, dress and shoes for ye, Mrs. Clancy, in the morning. We can discuss the other clothing items tomorrow, ye need yer beds by the looks of yer faces.”

“Thank you so much, Mrs. Drummond.” She said with a smile to the woman.

The woman smiled and nodded at her. “And which room would you like, James?”

“Put my things in the furthest room along with my brother’s. My wife will take the other.” Jim said as he finished off the last of his ale and turned to glance at her. “Ye can go up to wash and take yer time if ye’d like. I’ll wash in my brothers and then come to say goodnight.”

She nodded and slowly rose, following Mrs. Drummond up to her and Jim’s room. Melinda had never felt so filthy in her life, and there had been many times during travels as a girl that she had indeed gotten very dirty. She sighed with relief seeing a small hip bath and a clean shift left on the bed for her. She was soon washing vigorously with soap and cloth. Looking around, there was indeed a brush, so she decided to wash her hair, even though it would be a bother to get untangled.

Adorned in the clean shift and sitting on a stool by the fire, Melinda attempted to unsnarl her hair. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea as exhaustion started to overtake her, soon throwing her hairbrush against the wall with a loud thump and a sigh.

A few minutes later, there was a knock at her door, “Melinda, are ye alright? I heard yer voice and then a thump. Ye dinna fall did ye?” Melinda wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and opened the door for her husband. “No, I’m afraid I lost my temper. I’m tired, overwhelmed and my hair is being difficult.” She replied sheepishly, looking up at Jim as he walked into the room.

He took in her pink face and tousled hair. His mouth smirking up in the right corner, he chuckled, “would ye like a bit of help, looks like ye are losing this battle?”

Melinda sighed, retrieved the hairbrush and sat on the stool. “Since you did such a fine time before, of course.” 

Following her into the room, he replied, “Well, Melinda, I’ve curried many a horse's tail and to tell ye the truth, I’ve had a few wars with my own hair. Not to mention, my sister has lost the battle with her curly mop from time to time. Come to think of it, ye might just match her in temper, but I’m not thinking this is a compliment.” At the look on her face, he let out a deep rumbling laugh. “I am sorry.”

She turned to face the fire and held the brush up in the air for Jim to grab. He separated her hair into sections, started brushing the ends first, working toward the crown of her head, while keeping one warm hand on her head to help against any pulling. He really did know what he was doing.

Too weary to talk, her mind wandered to her. How could it not with the warmth of him right at her back? He was wearing a clean shirt and his kilt had been washed, something he hadn’t worn since their wedding and it wasn’t the same one, so his brother must have brought him some extra clothing. Jim smelled of soap, man and a bit of horse. Melinda didn’t mind though, she’d always enjoyed the smell of horses. 

Once he’d finished, she turned to face him again and cupped his cheek. “Thank you,” she whispered. 

“Mo nighean donn,” he whispered back to her. 

“What does that mean?” She asked.

“My brown-haired lass,” he said, stealing a quick peck of her lips.

“A rather dull-colored brown, I’ve always thought.” She sighed. 

“No, not dull at all. It’s like the water in a burn, the way it ruffles down the rocks. Dark in the wavy spots, with wee bits of auburn where the sun touches it.” He said, his fingers traced through her curls and lightly ran along her neck and down to her shoulders, leaving a tingling warmth in their trail.

Shivering, she shrugged her shoulders, wrapping the blanket tighter around her, “You are very sweet, James Clancy.”

“There, I think your hair is pretty much done, though I think it has a mind of its own. I understand why you lost your temper.” Pulling up a stool to settle in front of her, Jim took a deep breath. “I am glad ye convinced me to stay here tonight. I am happy to be making love to ye on land… if ye’ll have me.”

“I will always have you,” she whispered and sealed their lips together. “Come, let’s go to bed.”

* * *

A consistent knocking woke Melinda out of a sound sleep the next morning. Groggily opening her eyes, she stretched and stumbled toward the door. Opening it a crack, she peeked out.

“Mistress, I am Morgan. I’ve brought ye some parritch and tea to break yer fast and to help ye dress. May I proceed?” The girl asked.

Melinda nodded, never having been a morning person, she was distinctly fuzzy-headed. After using the chamber pot, downing a spoonful of porridge and a sip of tea, she put herself in the young maid’s hands.

As Morgan tied the stays, Melinda spoke up. “I will be on a boat for a couple of months and don’t want anything that restrictive, do I have to wear these?”

“Well, with all the jostling, you will want some support, you have a nice bosom Mistress. But I think I can help a bit. Take in a deep breath and hold it while I tie. Now release, does this feel loose enough for you?” Melinda nodded her head. “Knowing that you are traveling back to your husband, Lord James’. estate with mostly men, Mrs. Drummond found you some stays that tie in the front so you can manage on your own. If you get too uncomfortable, you can loosen the laces a bit.”

Morgan continued about her work while Melinda snuck more tea between bites of porridge. After arranging her hair in braids, pinning it to the top of her head and finally tucking the fescue into her bodice, Morgan stepped back, admiring her handiwork.

“Pretty as a portrait, Mistress.” The girl said happily. “The dark brown of the gown with the cream bodice and accents on the skirt flatter your eyes and complexion. If I do say so myself, your hair fixed up nicely. The gentlemen are waiting downstairs.” 

Melinda looked down at herself, thinking,  _ not too bad _ , although the shoes were pinching her toes. She knew Jim would get her a new pair if she told him when he had time.

Her husband’s mouth dropped open upon seeing her descending the stairs. Daniel elbowed him in the ribs, “close your mouth, you’re letting in flies.” Jim snapped his mouth shut but couldn’t take his eyes from her.

She enjoyed it, a lot more than she thought she would as they held each other’s gaze on her walk towards him before she graciously dipped into a curtsy, “Good morning, gentlemen.”

Jim, bowing deeply, replied, “aye, it is now. We need to be on our way.” He said with a smile. “I made a wee visit to gather more supplies this morning, we will have no worries for the rest of our trip and I’ve purchased a few items of clothing from Mrs. Drummond. We’ll sort out the rest of what you need when we get to Leoch.”

She nodded. “I’m ready to go. I broke my fast already.”

“Good,” he said, tucking his arm around her as they began to walk toward the exit together. “I have a surprise for ye, Melinda. There was a wee bit of trouble with obtaining yer mare from England. I found one that would be suitable for ye, a pretty little mare, although she has a silly name for a horse. The stable master’s daughter named her Biscuit due to her coloring resembling baked shortbread. She has a gentle disposition with a few years in her yet for breeding. I think you will be fine with the purchase.”

Mrs. Drummond rushed through the door from behind the bar, coming from the kitchen as the smell of food followed her. Bending behind the bar, she straightened, draping a thick wool cloak over her arm. Stopping in front of Melinda, she presented her with the cloak. “Mistress, I must again apologize for my comment yesterday, I would like you to have my niece’s cloak. T’will keep ye warm on yer long journey.” 

Appreciating the soft wool while admiring the deep green color, Melinda nodded her head. “I will wear it proudly, thinking of your niece as it keeps me warm. Thank you, Mrs. Drummond, and thank you, Morgan, for your kindness.”

Mrs. Drummond dropped a curtsey while Morgan touched her arm, telling her to have a safe journey. Jim couldn’t help but smirk as they walked away.

“What’s that smile for?” She asked.

“Nothing. Only that ye sure are a charmer,” he said, opening the door for her and guiding her outside with his brother trailing behind.

The trio made their way to the stable yard where all three horses were loaded with bags and to bring and load on the ship. Melinda immediately went to Biscuit, stroking her soft nose while whispering nonsense to the mare. She had always loved tending to horses as a girl and go on rides for most of the day.

Her mar had a black tail and mane, setting off her beautiful tan color. She was a pretty horse indeed. Biscuit nuzzled against Melinda’s cheek as she scratched her ears. Seeing the side saddle, Melinda realized she hadn’t ridden this way in years. She usually would wear riding trousers, (only when her father wasn’t on the estate to scold her for it), but in this case, she would traveling in a skirt and have to ride side-saddle to the docks

Looking around for a mounting block, Melinda startled as strong warm hands surrounded her waist, lifting her easily and setting her in the saddle. She looked down at Jim, still astonished at the ease with which he had lifted her.

“Thank you, Jim,” she stammered as he stared at her owlishly, his eyebrows practically rising to his hairline. “Is that supposed to be a wink?” She giggled.

“Aye, tis a wink, Melinda,” he replied as he mounted his horse in one swift movement.

* * *

Daniel led them out of Kincardine, Melinda following behind with Jim bringing up the rear. Eyes focused on his wife, he thought she sat a horse very well, though he couldn’t see her figure with the thick cloak bundled about her.

She had already bonded with the mare in the few moments they had together in the stables, he chuckled to himself. Melinda was warm and friendly, but with a core of fire. A Dhia, he was already lost. She, an English lass, had managed to charm Mrs. Drummond, the maid, and now even Daniel was under her power from what his brother told him the night before.

Not to mention the blasted horse. He knew the people of Leoch would love her as well, and those who didn’t trust her at first would learn to with time.

They rode hard for a few hours until they were riding through the smaller fishing village and then the docks, stopping by their ship and letting the crew unload the horse's packs onto the boats. They had only a few minutes to refresh themselves before they would board for the rest of their journey to Leoch.

Daniel passed around six apples, giving two to Melinda. “One’s for ye, lass, and the other for the horse.” 

Melinda smiled, feeding a delighted Biscuit her treat. “Oh, I see how it is, my girl, keep you fed and I can ride you anywhere.” She ran her hand through her mane and pressed a kiss to the mare.

Jim’s face turned red, thinking of the night before and the heat of the moments of their coupling. She had painted a glorious picture on top of him, face contorted in pleasure as she rode him. But he couldn't think of that now, for fear of embarrassing himself or her more than he intended.

Melinda turned toward him. “Are you sure she’ll be okay below deck?”

“Yes. Ye can visit her to keep her company.” He said, stepping towards her. “Most horses do fine on journeys as long as we keep them fed and give them water.”

She nodded. “Alright,” she said, giving the mare another scratch behind the ears. “We should board.”

* * *

The first few days when they left port flew by surprisingly quickly, but soon on the fourth day it was approaching dark and time for dinner. Jim had been up on deck to sail the boat that day before going below to take count of the stores and check on the horses.

Melinda was tending to Biscuit when he entered the room. “How does she fare, lass?” He asked, sitting beside her.

“Good. I like to think she enjoys my company,” she said, turning to see him.

“She does,” he said, smiling. “I know I do.”

“You’re awfully cheeky today,” she said, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“I’ve missed ye, lass,” he said, running his hand through her hair. “Mo nighean donn…”

She leaned closer to him, pressing their faces and lips together. She slowly moved as close to him as she could, raising herself to sit on his lap as they continued to kiss. “I want you,” she whispered in his ear as she turned to kiss the side of his face and neck.

“Here? In the hay?” He asked, holding her by the waist.

“Yes, here. In the hay. I want you, Jim.” She giggled, their lips connecting for another moment. “Is that wrong?” Her voice was heavy with something he couldn’t quite pinpoint. Want? Lust? Need?

Jim glanced through his lashes up at her. She was watching him, expectantly, as if she was awaiting a signal to continue. He reached his free hand up to grab her at the nape, then pulled her down into a kiss and his hand traveled from her nape down the back of her dress.

The fabric was slowly softening in the warm embrace, and trails of water started dripping down his hand. He kept going, all the way to her buttocks where he found the hem, and then he dragged back, pulling the fabric up to settle somewhere on the small of her back.

Melinda laughed into the kiss and broke it, her hands trailing down to unlace his trousers and he licked his lips with a twinkle in his eyes. As she moved his trousers off, her cold fingers closed around him. Their gazes locked as she started moving him at her own pleasure, masturbating him at a painfully slow speed.

“Stop with the games,” he begged as his whole chest was tingling. He wanted no more than to push her hand away and just take her there.

He let her lead him, up and down, however slowly she wanted to because the look in her eyes kept him settled. Her gaze was filled with such raw emotion that he could just drown in her stare.

“I just want to have ye,” he finally moaned. “Mo nighean donn…”

“Well, you’re in luck,” she said and let go of him. She settled herself askew of his thighs as she hiked up her dress, revealing herself to be bare beneath. “I want you as well.” She positioned herself above him, and then slowly started pushing him inside of her.

His hands grabbed at her hips, and he took in a deep breath as she worked her way down until he was fully inside of her. He wanted to push back up against her, grab her by the waist and fuck her until he came.

But, he watched her face; her eyes closed, her cheeks glowing, her lips parted in a moan - and he waited for her to adjust, her tight muscles around him massaging him as she got used to his size.

“We are together like this so often,” she whispered, “and still you feel as good as the first time.” She let go of her dress, and the fabric fell down around them, covering their parts as she started rocking back and forth on him.

Jim reached out and placed one hand on her waist, his fingers pushing into the blue dress she wore for a steady hold. “Because I need ye now as much as I needed ye then,” he said, causing her to smile.

Melinda reached down and pushed her hands to his chest. She crawled until she had one on his shoulder, the other in his black hair, and she held him in place as she jerked her hips forward. “You,” she moaned, “charm me.”

Jim let go of air in a shiver and looked up at her. Though he couldn’t see her, he could feel her; tight, and warm, and wet it was around him. With every move she made, he felt himself being drawn toward the edge.  _ Not yet _ , he told himself.  _ I want more. Not yet. I want so much more. _

He looked up at her, his sight partly blinded by her brown hair sliding around him, tickling his nostrils and sticking to his sweaty cheeks. But in between the strands, he could see her face, all flushed and smiling, her eyes closed in pleasure.

_ I want you _ , he thought, and he pushed himself upwards, making her follow him in a gasp as he seated himself.  _ I want you _ , he thought, and he wrapped his arms around her, her legs around his waist as he pushed back up against her movements. _ I want you so much more than you could ever understand. _

He buried his nose in her neck as they found a rhythm together, her pressing down against him, and he pushed back up. Her dress caught between them was getting sticky with sweat and the wetness from her sex. His hands on her back felt damp from where the dew and salt of the ocean stuck to it. His nose on her neck could smell her and himself and them, together, as they made love.

Melinda pushed her nose down to his neck as she licked her way up to his ear, bit the lobe and whispered: “This is what I’ve waited for all morning.”

He groaned. “Then why did ye leave the bed at all? I would have come to ye there…”

Melinda pulled her head back and grabbed a hold of his cheeks. She held his head in her hands as she looked into his eyes and said: “I knew you would come down here before coming to our room. It’s just as much privacy as we need.”

He throbbed inside of her, and he moaned with the image stuck on his mind of her sneaking down here to meet him. His eyes shut, but still, it played on the back of his eyelids. He came with a grunt to her neck, and he shivered, clinging onto her dress as hard as he could.

She moaned around him, and she slowed down her riding until he had fully orgasmed. Only then did she pause, letting him fall back into the hay, his red face strained and his lips trembling as he breathed in deeply.

“Fuck,” he whispered. “Fuck.”

“We did,” Melinda said, her fingertips brushing from his cheeks down across his chest, all the way to her dress. She grabbed ahold of it and kept it in place as she slowly pulled herself off of him. "Did you enjoy yourself?"

“Of course, I did. I thought my heart would burst,” he said breathlessly and hid his face behind his hands as the cool air spread over him when she moved. Then, it got warmer - a shadow fell upon him, and when he lowered his hands to look, he saw Melinda hovering above him, her dress still hiked up.

“Would you?” she asked, but she needed not to finish her question, because Jim not only would but wanted to. He wanted to make her feel as good as she had him.

So he reached up and grabbed her by the thighs, and he led her down onto his mouth. He heard her gasp as her wet, sensitive lips met his. Then, as her thighs closed around his ears, it was as if the world around him became a distant memory. All he cared for was her and making her feel good.  At first, he kissed her, tasting her and himself all at once. His nose pressed to her soft skin, and his lips were soon glistening wet, her juices running down across them. Then, he pushed his tongue in between them.

At this, he felt her move. It was slowly, such a slight rocking that he might have missed it if he didn’t know her so well by now. He licked her up and down, outside the lips first, then inside. Then she started moving more now, leading his tongue where she wished for it to go and her hands sought into his hair, tugging at his locks ever so slightly.  Jim pushed himself closer, his hands on her thighs as he encouraged her movements, and then he let his tongue push in. It was just at her opening, but he felt her muscles pull at once, and the more he licked, the more they seemed to move.  When he heard her moan, it made his cock throb once more. 

_ I want you to feel good _ , he thought, dipping his tongue deeper, swirling it around before licking upwards around her nub.  _ I want you to feel so, so good _ .

As his tongue started darting back and forth, she started rubbing herself to his face, and soon it was as if she was riding his lips and tongue, holding him by the hair as she worked herself toward an orgasm.

“Jim,” she gasped, and he liked the way his name sounded on her lips. She moaned it, so lightly. “Jim, oh my God, right there. ”

And he licked her where she led him until she was so wet he no longer knew where he was at. The dress atop him, her thighs around him, her lips to his mouth. He was warm and lost in her senses, and soon she too was lost as she came.

He felt the muscles around his tongue tighten as she shuddered, and he heard her moan and gasp words he did not understand. His hair was being pulled again, tightly as she pressed herself down onto him one last time. Then, she lifted herself off of him, and he gasped in the air as she dropped down to lie next to him.  For a moment, they were just side by side. Jim was breathing heavily, wiping his wet face and beard, and Melinda was massaging her shivering legs, her breathing just as quick as his. Then, as it felt natural to them, his arms slipped around her, and hers around him, and they pressed close in a hug.

He buried his nose in her hair with a sigh. “Good afternoon, mo nighean donn,” he finally spoke.

Melinda laughed to his neck and planted a kiss on his collarbone. “Good afternoon, my love.”


	6. Chapter 6

The lovers, still entwined, woke to bird calls and sun streaming in through their chamber windows. Hands stroking up and down Melinda’s back, Jim asked, “How’d ye sleep? I dinna think I moved all night.”

Melinda kissed him, then nuzzled into his neck inhaling his sleepy musk, “Same here. I sleep so well lying next to you, I really don’t understand it, but I relish it. It looks like a gorgeous day, do you think we could go up on deck today? It’s been cold the last few days.”

“Let me see what I have to do above first. I’ll send Daniel down for ye with a note.” Jim kissed him again as they both got up to begin their day. 

Once Jim dressed and left, Melinda called for Andrea to help her dress before going to eat in the kitchen, chatting with the cook Mrs. Fitz and her daughter Molly when two notes arrived with Daniel, one to her, and one to Mrs. Fitz. 

“Oh, wonderful, Jim says I can come up on deck to be with him for a couple of hours.” She said, taking a sip of her wine. “Did my husband send you a note also, Mrs. Fitz?”

“He sure did," Mrs. Fitz said. "His lordship also asks most politely if I can pack a picnic hamper for lunch to send along with ye, and of course, I can. He’s a good man, Melinda, and I’m happy to say he’s smitten with ye. I’ve seen the way his eyes follow ye.”

Melinda nodded, color rising in her face. She was at a loss as to how to respond, but finally thanked Mrs. Fitz and headed toward her and Jim’s chambers to change into something more suitable for going on deck. Once she returned to the kitchens, the basket was ready and she went up on deck.

She found Jim behind the wheel, his first mate there beside him to take over now that he walked over to her. “How have you been?” She asked, smiling at him.

“Good. I had a table brought up for us,” he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Once they sat down at the bolted-down table, she had taken out their picnic lunch. They nibbled on roast chicken, bannocks and cheese in silence before beginning to speak. “We should reach Leoch in a month if we have clear skies and the wind is in our favor.”

“That sounds wonderful. I can’t wait for you to show me your home.” She said, pouring herself a glass of wine.

“Our home,” he said reaching across the table to take hold of her hand.

* * *

Once they finished eating, Jim helped Melinda go back below and return the basket. Mrs. Fitz was happy to see the couple and share a few of her tarts that she was making for dessert before they made their way out of the kitchens, but they barely turned the corner before Jim had her up against the wall.

Melinda’s hands sought across his tunic for something to hold on to as his fingers dragged through her hair, embraced the back of her head, and pulled her in for a kiss.

_ I can’t breathe _ , she realized. She was trapped between the cold walls of the boat behind her and Jim’s warm body ahead.  _ I can’t breathe. _ His lips were soft but demanding, kissing her with need, making her gasp into his mouth as his tongue sought deeper.  _ I can’t breathe. And I don’t want to. _

The halls below the deck of the boat were full of voices; laughter, shouting, and jests echoed between the walls, making it seem as if people were all around them. Melinda couldn’t help but glance to the side to ensure they were still alone. Her heart was racing. If they were found like this, what would people think? What would people say?

As his hands reached beneath her, tugging her by the buttocks until her legs were wrapped at his waist and her back firmly against the wall, she did not protest. Instead, she grabbed a hold of his black locks and forced his lips away from hers to gasp in air.

“My lord husband, you’re quite a bold man,” she whispered.

Even in the shadows, she could sense his dark eyes sliding across her body before meeting her gaze. He pulled her up a bit more, causing her to gasp as he pressed himself nearer. He was so close now she could feel his heartbeat. It was as quick as hers, she noted. Perhaps quicker.

“I beg to differ,” he spoke.

“Beg all you wish,” she said, still holding him at his hair. Two can play at this game. “You never even asked.”

“I thought ladies liked surprises, lass,” he said.

“I am no lady to you,” she corrected him.

Jim’s gaze slipped to her lips and he licked his own in thought. “May I kiss you?” he finally asked, slowly leaning in as her grip softened, “My wife?”

This time, she was the one to drag him in. He tasted of wine and smelled of salt. Perhaps it’s the sea air from being on deck most of the day. She had always liked that scent. She wondered what he tasted on her, what he smelled on her. She wondered if he liked it.

“Melinda,” he mumbled to her lips, “I want to-”

“Is it this way?” a voice echoed in the hall.

Melinda’s eyes fluttered open, and she stared into his own wide irises. They silently broke the kiss, and she held her breath as she glanced right. The hall was lit up with wall torches, and in their moving shadows across the floor, she soon sensed a person.

Perhaps if Jim had not been so quick to put her down, she would’ve kicked him away in a panic. There was no time to correct her hair, nor tug at her ruffled dress. Instead, as her heartbeat quickly in her throat, she dived to hide behind the only thing she knew big enough to cover her in the otherwise empty space - Jim.

He leaned against the wall with one hand, causing his cloak to fall just close enough to the floor that she could settle behind it comfortable. Through the rough-spun fabric, she could still see the slight movement as someone seconds later rounded the corner and stopped.

“Oh, apologies m’lord!” a woman spoke. It was Molly, Mrs. Fitz's daughter. “I thought I was all alone. Well, that, we were all alone.” Her voice sounded sorry at the last part as another person sneaked up behind her.

A dockhand.

Melinda found it hard to keep her lips sealed as she wanted to laugh, but pressed her face into his back to conceal it. The two were clearly searching for the same quiet spot that Jim had pulled her into. Her husband too had a little smile on his lips. “I have some.. matters to attend to,” he spoke, “privately. My apologies for running into ye, Molly.”

As the two made their way back, Melinda could hear the girl’s angry whisper: “I knew we should’ve gone to the kitchen storeroom!”

As the noise subsided, he slowly lowered his cloak and turned to look at her. She was still seated, back against the wall, and he gave her an apologetic shrug. “Maybe we should’ve gone to the storeroom.” He joked with a chuckle.

“I’m sure you would’ve liked that,” she smiled as she reached her hand up and Jim grabbed it, expecting she needed help getting back on her feet, but instead she pulled him down next to her. As he knelt by her, she pushed her hands across his shoulders, down to his back, and pressed their noses together. “Now,” she whispered, her eyelashes fluttering as she looked into his dark eyes, “what was it you wanted to attend to privately, my lord?”

Jim’s cheeks reddened as he leaned back in for a kiss. “To do this-”

“Mmmm,” she moaned as he kissed along her neck. “Shouldn’t we go to our room?”

“Never a chance. I want ye now,” he kissed me, his tongue parting my lips as his hands frantically pulled aside her bodice exposing her already hard and sensitive nipples.

Her hands fell back above her head, her body open and vulnerable to him. Jim kissed down her jaw to her neck and chest and then settled his tongue on her nipples, sucking and licking.

“Does it evr’ stop?” He moaned against my mouth again, his hands pulling up the thick layers between them, “The wantin’ ye?” He lifted his upper body off her to maneuver the material out of the way, her hands coming to press against the side of his face, drawing his mouth to hers. They behaved like wild animals, clawing and scratching the other.

“Oh God,” she moaned as he slid his cock in between her parted legs.

“Jesus,” he whispered and brought his mouth to hers again. He began a gentle rhythm inside her as their tongues collided, “Now I know why the Church calls it a sacrament.” He said, making her laugh against him.

“Why?” She giggled, grinning and licking his upper lip.

“Because I feel like God himself when I’m inside ye.” Jim smiled and rolled his hips into mine. She couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled out of her chest. “What?” He stilled his movements, “Is that a foolish thing to say? Are ye laughin’ at me?”

“Yes,” she said between spurts of laughter, “I most certainly am.”

“Then you’ll get what you deserve,” He grunted and pressed his mouth against the curve of her neck. She brought her arms around his back to press him closer to her. Jim pushed deeper into my body, the wild animal in both of them coming once more to the surface. “Christ, Melinda.” He moaned and continued to ram into her, moving his mouth down to her breasts and taking one into his mouth, his teeth biting and pulling.

“Jim,” she moaned, her legs coming to wrap around his waist as he held her against the wall, “Please,” she begged him, her eyes shut tight in pleasure. "Take me to bed after this."

Within three more quick hard thrusts, he convulsed on top of her and as he cursed, "I will," she let go and unwound underneath him.

* * *

Melinda wasn't sure how much time had passed when she woke, disturbed by what sounded like shouting coming from upstairs. She and Jim had come back to bed after their rendezvous in the hallways below deck, but she couldn't recall having fallen asleep after they had laid in bed for more, but the light coming in through the little window was dimmed, suggesting it was already evening.

Heavy footsteps sounded against the floorboard above her as men rushed about the ship. Had something happened?

The shouting upstairs suddenly became more panicked, and she felt the ship turn sharply as the sails were tacked around in a rush. Melinda grabbed onto the bed frame to stop herself from stumbling as she attempted to stand.

Only a second later she heard blood-curdling screaming, followed by a thunderous boom as the Jaded Sapphire lurched viciously to the side. The sound of splitting wood and the ship groans echoed underneath her feet. What the Devil's hell was that?

The door flew open and Jim burst in, wide-eyed and holding his long-bladed dagger. "Melinda, ye need to hide we've been boarded by pirates. I dinna ken how long we will be able to fight them off, but I dinna want them to find ye either."

Melinda stumbled out of bed and into his arms. "Pirates?" She whispered. "Where are you going?"

"Back up on deck," he said, holding her close. "If anything, I know the captain from sailing. I might be able to strike a deal. I want you to bolt the door behind me and don't open it."

"Okay. I will," she promised, tears rolling down her face freely. "I love you. Don't die on me."

"I dinna know if that's up to me, lass," he chuckled and his hands moved from her waist to cup her cheeks.

"This is not the time to joke," she said, smiling sadly.

"I love ye and will come back to find a safe in here, alright?" He said, leaning in to press their faces together before kissing her.

When their lips parted and she held onto him tightly in a hug for another moment before he left the cabin and she bolted the door behind him.

Melinda went to the far side of the bed and huddled the best she could to be unseen from the door on the floor. She sat there in horror as she could hear men fight above the floorboard several feet above her head, blood spilling between the cracks and dripping down onto the floor.

She could hear the door rattle and she whimpered as something banged against it. More like someone. 

There was a loud bang and the door burst open with a thud as it crashed to the floor. Everything was making bile rise in her throat, but the view in front of her wasn't any better.

Two ragged-looking men came closer to her while another blocked the doorway, wearing scruffy and unkempt clothing, all holding blood-covered swords in their hands as he met her terrified gaze. Only two words came to mind, the first swimming around her foggy brain in a cowering whisper.

Pirates, Pirates, Pirates.

The second following the first, equally terrified but with a pinch of uncivilized indignancy.

Fuck.

* * *

They didn't kill her straight away. For that, she didn't know if she was more shocked or grateful.

They dragged her up onto the deck, one of them keeping a fierce hold on her arm as they led her out onto the deck- now in the ominous shadow of a red and gold sail attached to an unfamiliar ship hitched up alongside the boat she'd been so happily sailing home to Leoch with her husband. Most of the Jaded Sapphire’s sailors had disappeared, blood-splattered floorboards the only trace of them left. Melinda gulped.

Was Jim dead? Where was he?

Her captors shoved her slightly, marching her past their own men as they ransacked the vessel, towards where a plank had been settled into the gap between the two ships. It passed her mind for a moment, in desperation to find a way to escape, that she should just jump into the water below, but she'd never been very good at swimming and her dress would probably way her down - down all the way to the bottom of the ocean - but maybe drowning would be the better option?

It seemed more peaceful in comparison to the horrid imagines rushing through her head. But they pushed her past before she could wrestle up the courage. Melinda wasn't sure where the nerve suddenly came from. She should have been scared, terrified, but the fear was slowly giving way to a fury that blazed through her veins and set her eyes sharp as daggers.

Why? Why was it that every time something good happened to her it had to be taken away? She'd been so close and so happy with Jim. She was going to be able to see her sister again someday soon. Everything had been going so well, and now she'd been captured by bloody pirates. Pirates who were mercilessly pushing her towards the helm of their ship.

God was playing a colossal joke with her - a game - and she wanted to play back. Perhaps it was the fear making her giddy; the certainty that she was about to die making her reckless, the tight grip around her arm pissing her off. Whatever the reason she found it hard to stop herself, though she was sure a second after saying it that it was going to get her killed.

"Get the hell off of me!" She hissed and violently twisted her arm out of her captor's grip. It hurt a bit, but at least he let go, and he actually looked surprised. “Let me go!"

The kerfuffle caught the attention of some of the men nearby, one in particular, standing slightly taller than the others and with an undeniable air of authority about him that nearly had Melinda cowering again. 

The captain, she assumed.

The man stood watching her, a curious frown on his face, a fearsome sword in his hands, albeit held somewhat lazily and pointed towards the ground. Wearing clothes that didn't resemble what she'd expected from a pirate captain but where still fancier than what most of the other men were wearing, golden hair let partially down and loose in the breeze, with arms that could easily rival those of a war god.

"Where did you find this one, Lom?" The captain asked lightheartedly, indicating his sword towards her, though he didn't seem that surprised to see her.

"Hidden downstairs… in nothing but a shift." The shaggy man on her left replied simply. “She’s probably the captain’s whore.”

Melinda set her jaw. "I have a name and I am not some whore. I am a lady, thank you very much," she muttered.

The captain raised his eyebrows as if amused by her audacity, watching her for a few heartbeats with hazel eyes. "No, no. I know who you are now, Lady Melinda. I spoke with your husband about saving his ship... though you are a much better price than anything I wanted from him before." He said with a slight smirk before turning to the man who stood behind him. “Go speak to Captain Clancy and tell him I am taking his wife. He can choose to find her down the road if he wants to fight for her that is.”

She crossed her arms to cover herself the best she could. She had always thought of it as a soft name, pretty and delicate on the tongue - but somehow, in this pirate's voice, she felt bile rise in her throat.

"Where is my husband?" She asked, walking straight up to the captain now. “I want to see him if you’re taking me.”

"All you need to know is that he is alive and that you are my prisoner. You may even call it my revenge on your husband, if you want," he replied, cocking his head her way slightly. "Though I doubt your husband won't try to find you. I wouldn’t let a woman like you get away."

She waited to speak, growing uncomfortable under his gaze as it lingered a little too long.

Why weren't they killing her? Why was she this pirate’s prisoner? Was this just another nasty trick God was playing on her? What kind of revenge could this be to Jim? What had Jim done to cross a pirate?

The fire in her eyes was burning out and their standoff was drawing a curious crowd of crew members, and she didn't think she could maintain this attitude for much longer. "No," was all she had to say. "No. You can't. Please."

The captain smiled again, glancing down to the ground for a second in a way that almost appeared bashful. His eyes still seemed amused, but this time it didn't feel tampered by arrogance.

She wasn't sure what to make of that.

"I can, and I have," he said mischievously. "My name is Captain Rick Payne - and welcome to the Kotu Kral, Lady Clancy. Take her below to an empty chamber. I’ll want to question her alone.” He said and turned proudly behind him to have his men lunge toward her, and the blood in her veins turned to ice.


	7. Chapter 7

_ I'm going to die. I'm going to die. I'm going to die. _

Melinda had never really thought much about how it would happen, she knew that eventually, naturally, it would. The inevitable and unavoidable fate of being human, but to be slaughtered by a band of savage pirates was definitely not something she would have guessed if she had been asked the question a week ago. 

Now, it had jumped straight to the top of her list.

She closed her eyes tightly shut, hoping that when she opened them again she would realize that the last ten, horrifying minutes of her life had simply been a fever-induced dream.

That she would wake up on her bed in the Jaded Sapphire with Jim’s chest against her face and hear the call of the seagulls and the smell of the ocean through the portholes.

Instead, she blinked them open to find a cabin boy sprawled on the deck before her, a sword through his stomach and blood dribbling from his chin.

It branded itself onto the inside of her eyelids and it nearly made her want to throw up again.

* * *

The cocky smile that had been dancing over Rick’s face disappeared as he noticed the immediate change in Melinda’s eyes. With the mention of his name, gone was the feisty, little brunette that had just landed on the deck of his ship like a scrappy and angered kitten.

Now, she looked more like a baby rabbit that had just accidentally wandered into the darkness of a wolf's den, wide-eyed and trembling. He felt slightly guilty, but he also couldn't help being amused by her sudden change in tone. He'd never meant to frighten her, only mild scare her so she wouldn’t try anything, but she was an inlander and an Englishwoman, and James Clancy’s wife at that.

Rick had little experience socializing with non-pirates over the last few years, but he was well aware of the stories and tales those living on dry land liked to whisper about him. It was clear on her face that his name was one she was familiar with. And for all the wrong reasons.

Perhaps he should have made a more gentle introduction if the slight shaking of her hands and the paleness in her cheeks was anything to go by. It was not the reaction he was used to, nor the reaction he tended to hope for when introducing himself to a beautiful woman for the first time, especially to those with such pretty, honey-brown eyes.

He nodded towards the two men that had brought her to him, “Take her below to an empty cabin. I will want to question her later on.” He dismissed them to take her below and join the others unloading the contents of the Jaded Sapphire’s hull.

* * *

Melinda noticed the exchange, but was so out of it she wasn’t paying attention to any conversations on the deck and tensed as the men grabbed her and forced her to go below the ship. They brought her to a room and shoved her inside before closing the door behind her. She tried to open it as soon as it closed, but it was to no avail.

There was no handle or anything, just a slab of wood with a latch that she heard slide into place on the outside. She turned around and saw a small bed and an even smaller porthole. As soon as she sat down on the straw bed, the door swung open and the shaggy-haired man from before, the one called Lom, stepped towards her.

She crawled back onto the bed as far as she could get away from him, her eyes watching him with every step he took closer to her. “What are you doing?” She asked, moving as far away from him as she could and darting off the bed as he came toward it.

Lom didn’t answer her as he grabbed a hold of her and threw her onto the bed as though she weighed nothing. She struggled against him as he pressed her into the mattress.

“No! Please!” She’d rather be murdered than defiled by one of the crew members. “You – can’t. I am a married woman… please.” She breathed heavily.

“Please, what? I can do what I want with you. No one will come for you if you scream... your comely lord husband won't touch you once I do,” Lom grabbed her by the chin, holding her face still as she looked into his eyes, expression thick with disgust. “It is just you and me now, little lady,” he said and crushed his lips against her, holding her face steady with one hand while the other slid over her breasts.

He shoved his hands under the thick material of the cotton dress and corset she wore. He grabbed the front of her dress and tore it open, ignoring her muffled cries as he crushed his tongue into her mouth and ran his hands up her exposed chest. Tears ran down her face and her bare chest heaved as she shivered from the air blowing through the room.

Lom leaned forward and rubbed his crotch against her thigh. “Kind of excited by the idea of bedding a noble lady. You have such sweet, soft skin… not like them tavern wenches or pricey whores. You are mine... and free of charge.”

She cringed away, feeling the growing stiffness in his pants against her leg, but the pirate didn’t waste time. Lom grabbed her by the waist, hands running over her bare skin and cupping both of her breasts before spreading her legs painfully far apart and positioning himself at her entrance.

Melinda turned her head away from him and instead looked at the wall to her right, when all of a sudden, she felt her face start to burn. Before she could even register that she had been slapped, he slammed into her, making her shriek out in pain. She tried to be numb to it all, but it hurt so much. She tried to be silent, but couldn't help small cries and screams every time he shoved himself back into her. She wanted to die as she felt wetness on her inner thighs and was sure it’s blood.

“So tight. So perfect. My pretty little noble lady,” he panted as he continued to use her. "Are you thinking about your husband while I fuck you?" Tears continued to stream down her face as she refused to look into his eyes and let out a broken sob as she felt him lick up her tears. “Look at me, whore...” Lom grunted, grabbing her face, his long nails digging into her jaws. He pulled a dagger from his boot and held it to her neck. “Look at me or I’ll slit your throat!”

She turned her head and looked up at him slowly, pinned with fear and his weight.

It was a horrible sight. The fat pirate was looming over her and thrusting into her at his top speed. Sweat started to form at his forehead and made its way down his face and landed on her. He wrapped both arms behind her back and pressed a considerable amount of weight onto her.

She could hardly breathe.

“Spread your legs wider, cunt,” he growled out, pulling her hair until her scalp burned like wildfire.

She submissively moved her legs the most she could and just wished this could be over now, but she couldn’t help but think of Jim.

What would he do when he found out about this? Would he hate her? Would he blame her? Would he ever be able to look at her again?

Her eyes were dry and tears had stained her cheeks by the time he grunted and finished inside her. When he finally moved off her, one tear escaped her eyes but she quickly wiped it away as he fixed his breeches and stood. There was a squeak of the floorboards, the slam of the door, and the sliding sound of the lock going back into place before Melinda turned onto her side and whimpered into the sheets.

She wished this was a dream. She wished she was with Jim and prayed and prayed that he would find her. He would have to find her or she was going to be stuck on this boat with these men forever. And at the idea of that, she prayed that this long road would be easier than the last hour.

The door swung open again and she shook at the sound of boots thudding onto the floor.

Was this her life now? A whore to be taken by whatever pirate wanted her at that moment?

When she snapped her head over, eyes wary and cautious. She saw Captain Rick close the door behind himself and sat up slowly, making sure to pull the blanket around her to cover herself. “I would have thought you’d want to be the first one.”

“The first one to do what, my lady?” The captain said almost mockingly, but she couldn't help glancing towards the red-stained sword in his hands.

She slowly raised her face to look at him and laughed. “You planned all of this, didn’t you? To have him use me like his whore... to ruin my husband's love for me?”

“No. I planned to come to talk to you and I found Lom gloating about his prize he'd plundered. He isn’t gloating anymore, milady. I promise,” he said with a smug smirk on his face, placing his sword down to show her he meant her no harm. “I should have known to send better men with a lady such as yourself. I never meant for any harm to come to you.” He sat down on the edge of the bed, a distance away from where she was and indicating with a polite pat of his hand for her to join him.

“How can I believe you?” She asked. “Is he really dead?”

“Go see for yourself if you would like,” he said, pointing to the door. “Knock once and the door will open. Just this once.”

Melinda was certain this was one of the strangest things she'd ever experienced; being invited by a pirate to sit beside him after he killed his own crewman for raping her as if it was an offer to settle down for a pleasant, imaginary tea party. Well, this might as well be happening. "No need. I believe you. The blood on your sword is enough for me to picture," she replied slowly, still unsure of his intentions, her eyes narrowing. “I still don’t know how much I trust you.”

“Understandable,” he said. “I just wish to make you feel more comfortable.”

“Is that even possible?” She whispered and looked over herself, knowing she looked as awful as she felt inside. “I don’t know if I shall ever feel comfortable again. I want you to return me to my husband.”

“And I want my baby brother back. We don’t get everything we want, Lady Clancy,” he muttered. “Your husband took someone special from me, so I took you from him. I am sorry you were caught and hurt in the crossfire, my dear, but revenge is revenge. A man takes as he pleases in that way, especially a pirate.”

She only stared at him, wondering how what Rick was saying could be true. Could Jim do that? Kill a man in cold blood? “What do you mean… take?” She asked slowly, hands fidgeting.

“He murdered my brother. Is that what you want to hear from my mouth?” He said, leaning in to look her in the eyes.

“He wouldn’t kill an innocent person. I know him,” she replied.

“Do you?” He grabbed ahold of her and pushed her back into the bed. “Like you know me?”

“You said you would not hurt me, remember?” She said, trying to stay as strong as she could despite tensing up and then elbowing Rick in the face to get him off of her.

He moved away from her with a chuckle, wiping the blood from his mouth. “As I said, Lady Melinda, you don’t know me and you certainly don’t know your husband as much as you would like to think you do. He murdered my brother after he took his whore from his bed at some Inn. Does that sound like the man you love?"

No. No. No.

Jim couldn't. He wouldn't kill someone for something as trivial as that. He could have never bedded a whore when he had told her of his clean slate on their wedding night. Unless he had lied to her from the beginning.

"You have nothing to prove your filth that you spill from your mouth," she muttered with a shake of her head. She had to stay strong. She couldn't believe anything this man told her. "I know my husband the best I could in the months we had together since our wedding... I know he would never bed a whore let alone kill someone for taking one from him if he had."

"Believe what you choose," he said and carefully, slowly, pulled out a letter knife from his pocket.

It was old and small, but it was sharp enough to make her eyes go wide and her legs to tense up. He placed it on the bed in front of her, sliding it calmly towards her with the hilt first. She stared at it and didn’t know what to say.

Was he offering it to her?

"Take it," he offered. "If it'll make you feel more at ease. Maybe one day you won’t have to be a prisoner and will roam the upper deck." He smiled, outwardly polite and confusing her now.

She was inwardly wondering if there was an unintentional meaning behind the gesture. She doubted it, he was only a pirate after all. She picked it up, holding it delicately at an inexperienced angle so as not to hurt herself with the blade, letting her hands fall into her lap.

"Why did you kill the men on my husband’s boat?" She asked, her voice slightly stronger. “Are you sure that Jim is not dead? I didn’t see him...”

“I only kill men who attack me first. Unlike your husband, whom I spoke with him before we left. I told him that I was taking you in revenge for murdering my brother,” he replied. “I am sure he will come looking for you by the anger I saw on his face, but I have other things to worry about for now. Enjoy your time in solitude, milady.”

Rick bowed before grabbing his sword off the floor and then waltzing up to the door, knocking once, and then leaving her all alone again.

* * *

Jim’s hands shook as he stood at the wheel of his ship, sailing as fast as he could in the direction he and his men believed the Kotu Kral had disappeared to. Daniel and his first mate, John, held their breath, exchanging worried glances. They stood well back from where he was.

Rick’s words echoed in his mind as he gripped the wheel.

_ I have your wife and I am taking her with me. Our agreement of peace since you murdered my brother is now void. Fight me and die or fight me and save your precious Melinda. She will not last long with the voyages we will be taking, Lord James. Trust that more than anything. _

Daniel finally cleared his throat. “Rick won’t hurt Melinda, brother.”

“Tis not him that I am worried about,” Jim said and his sword hand flexed. “He won’t protect her from his men. I killed his brother.”

_ I’m coming for you, Melinda. I won’t let them hurt you while I live. _

Jim dismissed his brother and stepped away from the wheel. “John, I want ye to make full sail to Trenton and make port there. That was where I first met the pirate captain. He may take Melinda there.” He commanded and then stalked off to go down below to his cabin.

He had not been there since Melinda had been taken from him. If he slept at all it was in his office after he had been staring at the maps of different ports, trying to piece together the puzzle of where Rick would take his precious Melinda. As he went to latch the door closed behind him, Daniel pushed his way inside despite him trying to keep him out.

"Brother, what–“

“I know ye love her, ye bloody fool, but don’t let this hatred for Rick consume ye,” Daniel explained. “We will find her and she will be safe. Ye dinna need to lose yer life for a woman. The Kotu Kral is a day ahead of us. We will not catch them, even at full sail."

“Of course I do, Melinda is my wife. This consumes everything in my life until I find her!“ He yelled and ran a hand through his hair. “We will abandon any of our cargo that is not needed. An empty ship runs faster. We will catch them...”

Daniel jabbed a finger into his chest. “And then what?”

“I dinna ken… yet. I will get to that matter when we catch them,” he sighed.

Daniel shook his head. “No. I love her too, Jim, but… ye knew about the pirate truce when we stopped in Kincardine. Ye knew that Rick could see us if we stayed at the Inn and follow, but stopped anyway for that pretty wife of yers. I am worried about whether ye shall still fight if she dies… or worse. Whether the life will go out of ye again like when Rose-”

"Do not speak of what happened that day. I remember it keenly," Jim sighed because he knew his brother was right. "What good are ye, ye damn fool!"

This was his fault. In more ways that one. If he hadn’t stopped at the Inn, Rick would have never found out about Melinda and she would still be with him. He knew that in his soul and now he had to carry her light inside him for now, frozen in time like his sister.

“Ye do not mean that, brother. How could ye say that?” Daniel asked.

“If ye knew what love was, ye would move heaven and Earth. Ye would risk arrest and death. Even hell for the woman ye love,” he said, feeling tears roll down his face as he thought about what danger Melinda could be in on that boat. “Ye would do it as easily as the prick of a pin, so don’t tell me ye know what love is when ye won’t help me rescue the woman I love from her kidnappers. Until ye risk all, ye canna speak of love to me, brother.”

He couldn't save her, but he had to save Melinda. He knew her quick wit and smart counsel would keep her sharp, but if that light winked out, he might too.

His brother may have been able to keep him on his feet when they lost Rose and then their father, but Melinda had brought him back from the dead when he met her.

* * *

Later that night, Rick showed Melinda more graciousness and brought her a bowl of stew. He must have noticed the fleeting look in her eyes as she took the first bite, her hands shaking as she brought to bowl to her mouth because there weren’t any utensils.

"I can promise you that your husband will try to get you back… especially considering I took you and that you look like this," he offered her some sympathy, but it didn’t stick in the form of flattery. “If that makes you feel any better.” Her gaze met his, looking hopeful but understandably hesitant. "We are headed in the direction of Spain, so he won’t find us right away, but in time… he may.”

They were headed for Spain? That was a silver lining. "Oh. We are headed toward Spain?" Melinda shuffled her feet in her head, this trip was going to take far longer than she'd originally intended, but she wasn't dead — so at least she had that to be grateful for. And if after everything, she found her way to her sister in Spain, a little late, beaten, and slightly disheveled, but there none the less, then maybe she could consider this whole derailed expedition a success after all. Her sister would be able to get word to Jim and everything would go back to normal. "Okay. Thank you. Spain sounds wonderful."

A whole week passed uneventfully without Rick coming to the cabin. The only time the door opened was when her morning and evening meal was slid inside, and Melinda had never seen a better reason to thank God above. She enjoyed the solitude and sounds of waves crashing against the side of the boat. It reminded her of the first few days at sea with Jim and how close they’d gotten.

It was the twentieth day since Melinda had been taken from the Jaded Sapphire and from the man she loved, she had been carefully counting when Rick finally approached her again in his cabin again.

"You seem bored," the captain noted as he sat down next to where Melinda was on the bed, legs dangling over the edge as she counted the cracks in the floorboards.

He sat close enough beside her that she almost felt the need to shuffle a few inches away from him, and refrained from it in an attempt to not seem rude - but in all honesty, she was enjoying the closeness and didn't really want to.

She didn’t know why. Why did she like the closeness to the man that had taken her from her husband?

"I'm not bored," she said. It was a lie, obviously, but she didn't want to seem ungrateful for his hospitality or for him leaving her alone. “I enjoy the time alone here. It’s somewhat peaceful.”

"It's okay. I know you miss me, a little. Even if you have to keep innocent for that husband of yours," he sneered, chuckling as he turned to look at her. “Anyway, what do you like to do in your spare time besides stare at the wall and floor?”

She hadn't expected the question, so the familiarity of it took her by surprise. "Uh, the sound of the waves is peaceful. They remind me of my husband." She watched him for a minute as she'd never been a fan of admitting personal things to people she didn’t know, but she got the sense that he was being genuinely curious and probably wouldn't scoff at her answer. So she took a deep breath. "I do like to draw."

"Draw?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. It’s been a while since I’ve drawn anything,” she replied.

"Like what?" He wondered, curiosity warm in his eyes.

The sincerity made her smile. Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all.

"Anything," She replied. "Animals mostly, but really anything I can picture in my head or see around me. I have drawn my little sister a few times before, but she was the only person who cared enough to let me.” 

She turned her head back to the wall as he stared at her for what felt like an uncomfortably long time and then, wordlessly, Rick got up and walked away. His disappearance left an instant coldness in the space he had occupied beside her, she let her head fall into her hands and groaned.

Why was this happening to her? She did not want to feel this way.

She'd heard about this back in the village, women falling foolishly smitten with their captors. It was a fleeting feeling, but as hard as she tried to deny it, she couldn't help the sneaking feeling. She was most definitely a little bit smitten with this pirate captain despite being married. 

Despite him letting his crew member rape her, even if he killed him, in the end, it seemed like a desperate trick to get her to feel safe around him. And then, of course, Rick had to return five minutes later with a hastily wrapped paper package in his hands that immediately made her heart warm up after she carefully unwrapped it with a confused frown on her face.

The pencils fell out onto her lap first, as the last of the makeshift packaging unraveled to reveal a leatherbound book that had initially begun life as a ledger if the first few pages were any indication. Most of them were still blank and the paper felt sturdy under her fingertips - lower quality than she was used to, but better than anything by the looks of it because the pencils had already been perfectly sharpened by the blade of a knife.

She silently cursed herself when she realized she'd suddenly started hugging him, allowing herself a moment longer before her arms, folded comfortably around the back of his neck, slipped away as she pulled back, and turned away from him. "Where did you get these?" She asked as her hands fawned over the binding.

"We get a lot of stuff raiding ships. Some of it's valuable, most of it's not." Rick indicated to the book in her hand that she was looking at as if it was the most precious thing in the world. "But sometimes all that's needed to appreciate the value in something is to find the right person. I hope this will give your time down here more meaning. We will reach Spain in a few days if we have the wind on our side."

He stood up again, bidding farewell with a gentle smile before leaving Melinda with the gift.

She held the items fondly in her lap as the soft warmth in her heart seeped into her cheeks. “Thank you,” she whispered, despite being alone.

* * *

The first thing Melinda drew was Jim’s face because she never wanted to forget it or his blue eyes. She sketched the seams of his bright smile and the creases of his hands. She sketched him at the wheel of the Jaded Sapphire with the endless sky and ocean in front of him, and his back to her while his strong arms held onto the dark wood.

Melinda sketched him beside her in bed with nothing on, smiling and holding onto her hand as they gazed into each other’s eyes. She sketched him as much as she could so she would never forget him in their time apart. There were a few drawings of her sister, the best she could without having seen her in so long. Even one of her mother, who she hadn't seen since the day Katherine was born.

She knew after all of that in her heart, Jim would find her again. He had to.

When the door opened that night, Rick silently entered the room and brought her a tray of food.

It was another bowl of stew and two pieces of bread, even a mug of wine it seemed. She ate it quickly and watched as he went to open the ledger to look at her sketches. She continued to eat, despite wanting to stop him from skimming through her drawings of Jim.

She didn’t want to hear what he had to say about them, especially if it was something rude or inconsiderate. Which was usually the only thing that came out of Rick's mouth.

“You have talent. Even if you waste your time drawing… him.” Rick let the ledger close and tossed it down before looking at the rest.

“It is all I have to remember him by,” she whispered, sighing as she finished her food.

“I understand your pain, even if it's misplaced.” He said. “I think you have done enough time below… would you like to come up on deck tomorrow?”

She looked up expectantly, the idea of breathing in the fresh air and feeling the sun on her face was more than enough temptation to say yes in her mind. “I would,” she said quietly.

“You may… if you promise you won’t cause any ruckus.” He sighed, glancing over at her expectantly.

“I won’t cause any ruckus… unless my husband shows,” she said, meeting his gaze carefully.

“I can agree to that, milady. See you tomorrow morning.” He said, taking the tray from her and leaving, the door locking behind him.


	8. Chapter 8

Undeniably stranded out in the middle of goddamn nowhere, looking out at a never-ending ocean on a ship manned by semi-feral pirates - most of whom didn't seem all that pleased to have an Englishwoman prisoner they couldn’t touch on board.

Rick had kept his promise of taking her out of the cabin and onto the deck the next day, but there was only really one thought permeating through her mind now that she could enjoy the sun beating down on her face again.

Now what?

Justifiably, Melinda still didn't feel entirely safe on the new ship despite Rick’s amicable welcome and promise of safety, but any misgivings she had towards those around her were inconsequential considering she could get away from them at any given moment. Once she went back down below she was going to be confined into the cabin again. At least she hoped so.

The dimly lit watery edge of the horizon was all that surrounded them for miles and miles and bloody miles. She was stuck on this boat either way.

Rick must have noticed the fleeting look in her eyes as she glanced around the ship, her hands ruffling nervously up and down her sides. "You are safe,” he reminded her. “No one will touch you in front of me.”

Her gaze met his, looking hopeful but understandably hesitant. No one had ever tried in front of him. The first day, Lom had been alone when he attacked her.

"We are close to making landfall in our first port in France for tomorrow to wait out a storm and then we will be headed for our first port in Spain," he explained. "But by our new route, it will take us another week to get where I first intended to stop."

A whole week? France?

"Oh," she shuffled her feet, this was going to take far longer than she'd originally intended. She would hopefully try to sneak away in the first port or wait for Spain if she didn’t have the chance. But she wasn't dead— so at least she had that to be grateful for. “Where is the first port?”

“La Rochelle,” he said. “Ever traveled to the beautiful country of France?”

“Once or twice,” she said, glancing over the railing at the endless water.

She would rather go to Spain. She didn’t need to see France again, especially not with him.   
The days seemed to bleed together when locked in a room.

Rick brought her onto the deck again, but at night after they left port, the land a speck in the distance. She had never even known that they docked when she was stuck below.

A ship didn't sleep so nor could its crew - at least not entirely. She knew that from her time on the Jaded Sapphire. There was always a handful of sailors awake at even the deepest parts of the night and a constant group snoring downstairs in their hammocks.

Shift work made sure the sails stayed aimed in the right direction and allowed a constant pair of eyes to keep a lookout for anyone trying to sneak up on them.

The diet on the Kotu Kral surprised her, though logically it shouldn't have. Lacking the convenient access of stopping in any port, they fed mostly on anything that could be dried, salted, pickled or left to go stale without worry it would go moldy. The only occasional fresh privilege was whatever fish they managed to catch that day - which they didn't bother with often as the nets slowed the ship down.

Pirate cuisine was the farthest thing from delightful or good that Melinda had ever experienced, but the mix was strangely satisfying and after a few weeks with a complete lack of options, she found herself getting used to the repetitive blandness of it.

Melinda had never really imagined what it would be like to be a pirate, but she hadn't expected it to be as uneventfully dull as it was.

Out on the open ocean and confined to the length of a single cabin and a few feet of the deck when she was allowed out, there was remarkably little to do. Melinda stayed on the outskirts of the deck looking out on the water, for the most part, hoping she would see the Jaded Sapphire come into view.

She would sometimes watch the sparing of the crew from a distance - unless it was Rick who was fighting, in which case he would nearly always, and entirely unfairly, pull his shirt over his head and throw it onto the deck, leaving Melinda with red-stained cheeks as she disappeared below deck back to her cabin.

* * *

The next few days passed quietly, after being given more freedom and time to walk the deck, Melinda felt more at ease even as a prisoner.

She knew Jim would come to fight Rick for her. She had to have hope.

The thought left an ache in her heart that she couldn't quite place, she'd not felt it often before, but it reminded her of the same moment she'd stood watching Katherine off almost a year before.

Rick found her staring at the same empty page of her sketchbook she'd been stuck on for the last hour while waiting for the dawn sun to settle more confidently in the sky, greeting her and earning a shy smile in return before he'd left her in peace, excusing Metin from the helm as the others began to stir downstairs.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, avoiding ships as they appeared in the far distance and soon finding themselves in sight of the Spanish coast.

They crept within reach of a cove a safe distance from Valencia, where she, Captain Rick, and a few choice crew members could be paddled to shore. 

With a tightness in her chest, Melinda couldn’t wait to set her feet on solid ground.   
Katherine had always loved her time spent in the market, not only because she was able to roam about freely, but because it was the only time she was truly alone with him anymore. Now that she was so close to delivering the baby, her husband kept her at the manor whenever possible, but let her go to the market now and again when she begged him to let her.

Ned enjoyed seeing the smile on her face as they walked down the dirt plan. Katherine was enthralled by the exotic smells wafting through the air, the sounds of pulsating drums, and the cheerful voices of street vendors selling their goods and wares. He had never been this far south before and had been experiencing a bit of culture shock due to the strange foods, different languages, and unyielding heat common to Spain, but Katherine was no stranger to adapting to her surroundings.

He had been working for her family for as long as he could remember, and before he had become her guard, he had only been a stable boy who brought her a horse whenever she needed one. She had been just like all the other noble ladies he’d known in his life, spoiled and bratty towards the help, but after a relentless amount of conversations with her, he realized that wasn’t as true as he would have liked to think.

His honorable words and actions toward her had won him her favor, and soon she would visit him in the stables twice a day. It wasn’t long after that when they had begun to share secret kisses in the hay whenever they could, but after her father died, she was sent away to Spain.

Nothing felt the same after she had left. There was a hole in his heart until the day he received word that he’d been promoted for his dutiful work and was to travel to Spain to become Lady Katherine’s guard.

That had been a few weeks ago, and though there had been a lot of lost time between them, the day he saw her face again had been one of the happiest of his life.

Going south was a true treat for him besides getting to see his lady love every day. Ned had grown accustomed to the north's harsh cold, but in Spain gone was the dark wool, cloaks, and leathers of traditional Northern fashion. 

There was a sea of bright, colorful robes and tunics that now surrounded them. And the dresses, if they could even truly be called dresses, were more revealing than the smallclothes of ladies back home.

While Ned was happy to wear fewer layers, but it was something for him to get used to. He still tended to dress in his traditional navy blue coat and hat, mostly because it showed he was an Englishman, though underneath he wore a thin white tunic and a pair of trousers.

He stole a glance at Katherine, who was wearing quite a revealing dress for the occasion, not that he minded. He only minded the glances she caught along their walk from different men and placed his hand on the pommel of his sword just in case anyone tried anything.

His eyes wandered back over to the woman who walked beside him. She was wearing a silk dress in shades of light blue with a plunging V-neck and a large billowing skirt that extenuated her swollen belly.

Katherine has always been stunning, even dressed in the dresses he remembered her wearing back home in England or days away from giving birth, and he was conflicted between wanting to touch her or cover her with a cloak and kill every man whose eyes lingered on her for too long.

“The day is lovely, is it not?”

Her voice startled him and he came to find Katherine glancing his way now, coming to stop in front of a barrel full of apples. She carefully picked two out that were the least bruised and gave the merchant who sold them a few coins before holding one out to him. 

“It is, milady,” he said, graciously taking the apple from her and taking a bite into it.

“Then why the sour look on your handsome face?” She asked once they were out of earshot of any of the merchants and walking amongst the crowd of people through the market.

“I did not mean to offend you. I only have too much in my mind, milady,” he replied as he took another bite of his apple and led her away, through the crowd and to an opening near the docks.

Once they were able to walk a bit more freely, he took hold of her hand and led her a bit more quickly until they came to lean against a railing to look out at the boats in port, the ones sailing in, and the endless ocean beyond.

“You are too quiet for my liking, Ned Banks. Tell me what is plaguing your mind,” she sighed, resting a hand on her swollen stomach before glancing back out at the water.

“There are too many things on my mind, milady,” he said, finishing his apple off with a final bite and then tossing it over his shoulder. “I am only afraid that our time will come to an end one day... “

“I knew that having you come here could have been a mistake…” She sighed, shaking her head. “I only missed your company and I—”

“No, it wasn’t. I am happy to be of your service,” he said, turning to smile at her.

“Ned, that’s not why I brought you here.” She laughed, looking back at him. “I missed you.”

“I know,” he said, smugly. “I missed you as well. More than you know.”

She shook her head again. “No, trust me. I know exactly how you feel,” she gulped and ran her hands over her stomach.

“I should have never implied I had a worse time than you did this last year, milady,” he said, moving a bit closer to her. “I can only hope that my arrival has made things easier on you.” His hand came to rest on top of hers and she looked up at him solemnly.

“It could be worse. I could have married my uncle,” she teased him and laughed, moving one of her hands to rest on top of his. “I bask in the memory of rejecting his proposal, even if it cursed me to marry someone… even worse. I also hold the memories I have you and my sister dear to my heart too.”

“Yes, I suppose you do. Your uncle is now a scorned man ever since that day,” he said, with a shrug of his shoulders. “Not that I feel bad for the likes of him.”

She giggled again, a brilliant sound to hear on the likes of today. She turned her face back toward the water and then back to him. “Do you see that… that woman over there?” She looked pale and sheepish as though she had seen a ghost of someone from the past as she took in a short breath. “Does that not look like my sister?”

Ned followed her gaze to see a disheveled woman being lead by a crew of nasty-looking men.

The Lady Melinda Gordon he remembered did not look much like the woman he could see. But then again, the men she was being led by looked like pirates and if Melinda had been taken by the likes of them she would not look the same after weeks on the sea.

“It could be,” he said. “When was the last time you heard from your sister?”

“When she made port in Kincardine, but that was some time ago. I’ve written to her twice since then and there hasn’t been a reply, but I only thought the ravens could have gotten lost at sea or there was a storm that took her reply,” she said with a shrug.

“I see. It may be her then,” he said cautiously. “Kincardine is a port frequented by many ships as it is a vast port, but that means there is a slew of criminals lurking in the shadows. Like pirates.”

“Pirates?” She said, glancing back over at the woman who resembled her sister. “Are you sure?”

“I cannot be entirely sure, milady, but by the looks of the men around that woman… the odds are not in her favor.” Ned sighed and squinted, hoping he would be able to get a better look at if the woman was truly Melinda or not. “She does look to be your sister. What would you like me to do?”

Katherine glanced over at him and sighed, “Anything you must. If there is a chance it could be my sister, we must try to save her.”

* * *

The wet pebbles shifted slightly under Melinda’s feet as she stepped back onto dry land for the first time in a little over a month. Returned to solid ground, but she didn't feel as steady as she'd expected, as if missing the comforting sway of the ship she'd grown familiar with.

Her feet refused to move, but there was nothing stubborn about it, a passive resistance as she tried to convince herself that the absence of joy in her heart was entirely normal, despite finally having a chance to flee with what little she had packed with her. Rick had promised her a night in some Inn, as long as she proved to not cause any problems, but he didn’t have a complete read on her.

They had made port in Valencia, Spain and she knew that there was a chance for her to get word to her family from here.

Katherine had sailed to this port city to marry some widowed merchant without an heir. She knew it would only a few days walk at the most because she had come here twice with her sister during her courtship. Now she just needed to see if she could sneak away and figure the rest out from there.

"You okay?" Rick asked from where he'd been attentively watching the back of her head from where he stood next to the wooden paddle boat.

"Yes. Only a little woozy being on solid ground again," she said. The words came out almost as wobbly as her legs had been last night, as she tried to remember what it felt like to be safe. A way of coping with what has happened to her. She turned back to the captain, who was patiently waiting behind her on the docks. “Are we going straight to the Inn then?”

“Aye. I will accompany you with a few of my better crew members for a taste of luxury,” he said as he pushed off where he was leaning and began to walk.

She slowly followed him, holding onto her ledger of sketches and pencils tight to her chest. She had a pack of clothes tied to her back as they walked toward the edge of the small Spanish fishing village, Rick slowed his pace to stand next to her, the other pirates walking ahead of us.

“Now Melinda, I’ve agreed to let you come wi’ me and my first mates, but I will not have any funny business. If you try anything I won’t stop my men from what they want to do in the heat of the moment. Do you hear me? I do not want you to get hurt, but I cannot promise anything in port. My men are free for the days we are port.” He reached out to take her hand that resting at her side, but she pulled it away.

“Alright,” she agreed, not wanting to push the boundaries. “But do not think I will enjoy it or you.“

“You can be nasty to me as you want, milady. It only makes the fire in my loins rage harder for you,” he chuckled and turned around to continue forward to join his crewmen.

They talked in hushed tones, going over any type of defense plan in case there was an attack. She was to walk behind with her two semi-feral guards. She knew them as Winston and Bata, the men who usually stood by the door of her cabin. They weren’t the worst of the people she had seen on the crew and was thankful for that.

As they neared the Inn, Rick told Winston and Bata to keep her under watch outside while he secured any rooms and meals they may need. She was frustrated that she had to sit outside and leaned against the building as she idly passed the time.

She wasn’t sure how long this would take and she knew she really ought to listen to Rick at least for the first day in port before trying to sneak her way off, but she suddenly felt as though she was about to burst. “Winston, I need to relieve myself,” she said as she pushed off the wall she was leaning on and went walking towards the market, in search of a decent loo.

“Mistress, I do not think you should be goin’ anywhere,” Winston shouted at me and when she didn’t stop, she heard a thud as Winston and Bata both jumped off from where they were sitting up on a ledge and came running up behind her.

“Och, Cap’n willna like this,” Bata said and she could hear the slight fear in his voice.

“Rick isn’t going to stop me from having to relieve myself, besides, you’ll wait outside the door and it will be just fine.” She smiled at them both to get them to follow dumbly and entered a friendly enough looking building.

She asked for a restroom and the lady behind the counter of what she assumed was an apothecary, something she would take a look at on the way out, nodded and pointed down the hall.

“I won’t be long,” she said to Winston and Bata before she closed the door behind her and sighed.

Alone at last.

She hadn’t really been alone, truly in what felt like forever, even if it had only been a few days. She had been basking in her small freedoms on the boat and roamed about as much as she could as often as she could until they made port in Valencia

As she quickly went to the bathroom, she realized it wasn’t quite up to her standards, but it was enough for what she needed.

Just as Melinda was straightening her dress out and about to open the door, she heard shouting coming from the other side.

When she reached for the door, a loud thud crashed against it and made the wall and door shake. She reached for the door again, this time hesitating before opening it and peeking through the small slit she created.

She saw both pirates that had been guarding her lying unconscious on the ground, swords in hand

“Oh, Christ!” She opened the door completely and glanced around to see that no one was around in the immediate area.

Both Winston and Bata didn’t look too hurt, but she could see the forming of a bruises on their foreheads and went to see if they would wake when someone yanked her arm and pulled her to her feet.

When Melinda looked up she saw a younger boy, only a few years younger than her and dressed in an Englishman’s clothes. “Let go of me!” She struggled and went to shove him away until she recognized his face. “Wait. Ned? How are you here?”

“There’s no time to explain now, but I knew it was you when I saw you, Melinda… er— pardon me, my lady.” He said and then bowed slightly as he let go of her. “I meant not to frighten you.”

“You are a sight for sore eyes,” she said, embracing him tightly. “It had been a whirlwind of a few weeks.”

“I am most excited to hear the story, but once we are safe and at the manor, milady. Your sister will be happy to know that I found you safely,” Ned said, leading her down the hallway and sneaking her out the back door.

The boy quickly ran down a dark alley, taking sharp turns here and there, but she held onto his hand and followed dutifully. She trusted Ned and had known him since he was a boy and his father had come traveling through her father’s land to find work after Ned’s mother died.

Melinda had always been fond of the stable boy, but it looked like he had risen up from where he was before. She wondered how, but then it was clear to her. Katherine has been miserable in Spain alone, but if someone she cared for was to be there with her, that would be all she needed.

She nearly rolled her eyes at the thought, knowing her little sister had most definitely used what little pull she had with her husband to get him here. The aging (and dying) Spanish merchant that Katherine was married to was born into a wealthy family, but that did not mean he was smart.

The man was most-definitely clueless to the idea of his wife inviting a childhood flame as her own personal guard, especially if she was carrying his child as she had told her in the last letter Melinda had received.

That had been an old letter. She knew by now she could be an aunt, and the boy before her held the answers to all of her questions.

When Ned finally slowed down, he leaned against the wall to catch his breath and she stalled beside him, trying to catch hers. “So, when were you going to tell me that you were in love with my sister?” She asked. “You always used to dodge my questions before.”

The boy’s head turned quickly and while his face was stern for a moment, his eyes gave him away, along with the blush that rose to his cheeks. “I could not simply tell you, if I have never told her.” He sighed.

“You’ve never told her?” She laughed, rolling her eyes.

“How could I?” He asked, shaking his head, moving toward the end of the alley to look around first and then waved her over. “I would never make her choose. I could never make her leave her life to live mine.”

“What life is she living again? You do understand I read the letters she sends me and know of her suffering here,” she said, slowly following him and looking around the corner at the people walking about the market. “Are you sure it’s safe?”

“Safe enough. If we walk calmly we should blend in, milady. There is a carriage just up the road waiting for us,” he said, glancing back at her. “Katherine is there and trust that I know what her life is like. She is safer with her husband than she would ever be with me. How could I provide for her? For a family?”

“You truly care for her, Ned, if you can see past your love for her and not go after it. I see this and am thankful there is someone who has her true interests at heart here,” she said, placing her hand on his shoulder. She was having trouble breathing again and felt tears prick her eyes at the idea of seeing Katherine. It had been so long since she had seen her. “How is she doing?”

“As good as she can be. The baby will be here soon,” he said, leading her quickly down the road and taking to her quietly. “Things will get better now that you are here. I know it.”

She smiled as she saw the carriage in her view, her legs picking up speed now. “I am happy to be here and not on that ship anymore. I believe I owe you a debt for saving me,” she replied. “I will also need to send word to my husband. He has to know that I am safe now.”

Ned nodded. “We will send a raven to your husband as soon as we get to the manor, milady,” he said, stopping beside the steps of the carriage to open the door. “And you owe me nothing. I would do anything for your sister and when she saw you… it would not have been right to leave you with those men. I am happy to reunite you with Katherine.”

“Thank you. Just know you can come to me for anything,” she said, smiling at him.

He nodded curtly as she stepped up into the carriage and it took her breath away to see her sister again.

Though Katherine had grown into a woman before she had left for Spain, it was hard for Melinda to see her as anything older than an eight-year-old running at her heels. Yet there she was, sitting with perfect posture the way she always had, looking out the small opening to her right, plump with child and a worried look on her face.

“Katherine,” she said softly, causing her to look over and smile. “I never thought I would see the day when you would ruin your perfect figure.”

“That is the first thing you say to me after all this time?” Katherine tsked and then laughed loudly. “Yes, that’s my sister. I missed you.”

She rushed to sit next to her and hugged her. “I missed you more than you can possibly know.”

“So how did you end up on a pirate ship?” Katherine asked, pulling back slightly as the carriage suddenly jolted forward. 

“I am not quite sure if I am ready to tell that story,” she sighed, running her hand over the swell of her sister’s stomach. “Were you going to tell me that you invited Ned to be your  _ personal guard _ ?”

Katherine blushed and turned her head to look out the window. “Don’t say it like that,” her sister giggled like she was a little girl again.

“Say it like what? Like you didn’t invite the boy you used to kiss and frolic in the hay with to watch over you every moment of every day?” She asked, laughing.

“Maybe I did, but I am still married to that boorish old man and have to share a bed with him whenever he tells me to…” Katherine lost any happiness on her face and shook her head, sighing. “At least now I won’t have to deal with him groping or bedding me every chance he can get. Not while I am looking like a cow, as he says. I think I’ll stay fat until he dies… that will make him miserable.”

Melinda laughed and Katherine joined her. “That sounds like a marvelous idea,” she said, hugging her tightly. “As long as you are happy with what you look like, forget about everyone else. You are beautiful.”

“I know. Ned cannot stop himself from reminding me,” her sister looked up at her hopefully. “I think I love him. Truly, I never knew if it was just that I loved the way he made me feel when I was with him, but after having to leave him…”

“I know what you mean,” she said, reaching out to hold her head.

“I trust you do, but under different and better circumstances I would say,” Katherine sighed and gulped. “So, how did you come to be with those... men, sister?”

“Captain Rick Payne raided the Jaded Sapphire and when his men found me below, they brought me to him. They believed me to be some whore… waiting in the captain’s cabin,” she said with a sigh. “I thought they would just kill me like they had to most of the crew on deck, but instead Rick thought it would be fun to take me as his prisoner. He had a vendetta against my husband… after he said that Jim killed the captain’s brother. I am not sure how that happened…”

“Do you believe a pirate? Would Jim do such a thing?” Katherine asked.

“In my heart, I know Jim would never kill an innocent man. Rick said that it was after his brother stole a whore from his bed… but I know Jim had never laid with anyone before our wedding night. It doesn’t make sense and I won’t know the truth of the matter until I see him again.” Melinda sighed, eyes filling with tears.

She quickly untied the bag she had on her back and found the ledger with her sketches in it. She opened it to look at one of the many drawings she had of his handsome face and ran her fingers across it as though she could feel him again.

“You truly love him then,” Katherine said, moving closer to her to look at the picture she had opened the ledger to. “He is handsome.”

“And kind,” she said softly, looking up at her. “He was going to bring me to see you once we settled in Scotland.”

“Sounds like I will fancy him then,” Katherine said, wrapping her arm around her. “Do you think he will let you stay until I have the baby?”

“I have no doubt that he would even stay with me,” she said with a smile.

“Wonderful. That is just wonderful,” Katherine said, clapping her hands together. “I cannot wait to meet him. We will send a raven as soon as we reach the manor.”

She nodded and closed the ledger, putting it back into her back and turning toward her sister to begin asking her how she had fared since finding out she was with child.

She couldn’t wait to see Jim.


	9. Chapter 9

Jim had to reread the letter three times before he believed it. Somehow someway, Melinda had been rescued while in port at Valencia.

Her sister had written to him, telling him very little besides that she had seen Melinda and had her guard, Ned Banks, retrieve her from their company and bring her safely to her manor. Katherine invited him to come and be reunited with her and he set off to sail there immediately.

While Jim knew it would still be a bit of a journey until they reached Spain, he could sleep a little easier knowing his wife was safe. That she was with her sister, who he knew was to have a child soon. Melinda would be fine there until he was able to get there and bring her back to Scotland as they had planned originally.  His heart felt as though it would burst at the idea of seeing her again. He paced about the top deck, watching as his brother was steering the ship toward their destination.

“What’s on yer mind, brother? Yer pacing like a dog in a cage,” Daniel chuckled, glancing back at him.

“I am only thinking of my wife. Leave me be,” he said, shaking his head and standing still. He sighed and looked up at the sky. “We need to get there as quickly as we can. Dinna wanna haste getting to my wife.”

“Aye. I ken that,” Daniel said, turning back around. “We shall get there when we get there. Two weeks' time. Ye ken that well, brother.”

“Aye, I do.” He muttered.

Jim felt the rain before he saw it. The darkness having hidden the heavy grey clouds that had been lurking overhead. Tiny splashes of cold falling gently against his face that seemed so out of place considering how temperate the evening had been so far, and how warm the tears felt as they trailed down his cheeks as he continued to think of his wife.

Jim only allowed a few to escape before he brushed the trails away with the back of his hand, shaking his head to dislodge everything that his mind was clinging onto. The image of Melinda’s face when they have reunited again, smiling and yet so shocked, and to see him.

And those eyes.

Eyes that were now nothing more than a painful reminder of everything he'd had almost lost, and everything he'd been trying so hard to find again.

“We should go below before it gets any worse,” he said as he began his way down to the lower deck.

Jim walked as fast as she could, his brother quickly getting someone to take over the wheel and quickly chasing him to keep up behind as he followed the path the rear of the ship. Giving a brief glance over the crew on board, he made sure to check that everyone was in their places.

Daniel shouted the orders so he wouldn't have to. The ships heavy ropes untangling from where they have been knotted before as the sails were switched for the harsh weather that may be before them.

His brother gently caught his arm a moment after the sails were changed and he had made a beeline for his cabin. “Are ye alright?” Daniel asked.

Jim nodded and took a step below, pulling his arm loose of his brother’s grip. “I will be once we are in Valencia. Just get us there, okay, brother?”

* * *

There was shouting. Shouting and screaming and begging and a pain that felt so distant and yet was somehow family to the pain Katherine held in her arms and in her chest.

Was she the one screaming? Was that the reason her throat and body ached so?

She didn’t think so, but here in this neverending place of silence, it was hard to tell what belonged to her anymore. She didn’t feel at home in Spain and she didn’t understand how she could hurt so badly and yet be so numb. Melinda was beside her, wiping the sweat off her brow and holding her hand.

"I can't do it anymore," she panted.

Melinda squeezed her hand in encouragement and leaned up to press a kiss to her cheek. "Almost there, little Kat." She whispered against her cheek. "Just breathe… in and out, and push okay? It will all be over soon."

Katherine listened to her and with all the energy she had, she did as she was told. The pain was unimaginable. It dropped the world out of focus and she could feel tears spring from nowhere and run down her face as she cried out, gripping Melinda’s hand with as much force as she was pushing.

Far away, she could hear the midwife and her sister tell her to relax and Katherine obeyed, chest heaving with the effort she had just put forth. She had to do this again? She felt like she barely had time to think before Melinda was telling her to push again.

And again.

And again.

They continued to go through the same motions more times - Katherine lost count - each time worse than the last. She was too tired to wonder how long this was going to last anymore.

Melinda continued stroking her hair as she felt another pain rip through her and heard her midwife’s direction once more. Her cries mixed with the howling wind from outside and she felt a burning sensation, vaguely noticing that Melinda, though still clutching her hand, briefly left her side and the midwife had told her to stop pushing.

“Okay, Mistress Katherine, you can push again. Just needed some help getting everything situated,” the midwife said as Katherine felt another pain burn through her entire body as coming.

“Come on,” Melinda encouraged as she moved to sit beside her again, “You can do this - push now.”

Summoning all her strength again, Katherinepushed through the terrible burning. Distantly, she heard more praises and words, but it was all drowned out through the pain that consumed her.

“That’s it, Katherine, push again,” the midwife said evenly, “You are close.”

She listened to her, crying out with the effort and managing to drown out the rest. Her ears rang and she felt tears streaming down her face and then the pressure changed and she heard a baby cry. Melinda made a strangled sort of laugh squeezed her hand and Katherine watched as her baby was lifted away from her legs. Instinctively, her arms stretched out and the midwife placed the baby on her chest.

“It’s okay, baby, it’s okay,” Katherine crooned softly to the crying child in her arms, pain is forgotten for a moment, “Mama’s here.”

She looked up to her sister to see that Melinda had tears rolling down her cheeks as she watched her, smiling, proud and awestruck at what he was witnessing.

“You’re a mother,” her sister choked out as if she could not believe her own words.

“I am,” she said, her voice weak. She turned her sweaty head and looked at her baby boy that lay on her chest. "I have a beautiful little boy." She closed her eyes because she was exhausted, and could hardly keep them open.

“He is beautiful,” Melinda said softly. “Would you like me to hold him so you can rest?”

“Yes, only you.” She whispered, eyes remaining closed.

* * *

The Jaded Sapphire could view the Valencia port after eleven days at sea and Jim smiled as he stood on deck just as the first bright edge of sun crested above the village. Today was going to be a good day.  Autumn had fallen. He could feel it against his skin even as far South as he was, the sun too weak against layers of cold in the midst of the morning, goosebumps forming on his arms as he watched the others prepare the tender to head to the mainland.

There was something eerily captivating about it as he watched, something that reminded him of the first time he’d stared upon a bee’s nest as a child. Humming with a living, breathing energy that he could hear - that he could feel, even standing a fair distance away as he was on the top deck.  And once again, Jim was feeling a reckless and nagging desire to get closer, the curious part of his brain wanted to pry it open and explore inside. Perhaps, this time, he wouldn't get stung.

The select few who he had chosen to venture inland with him had already gathered and the roles for the expedition divided. Most of the crew had to stay behind with the ship to bring it the rest of the way into port while Jim went to the manor and found Melinda.

He went below and readied his things, even collecting a few things he thought Melinda might want now that he was going to see her again before going back up onto the deck and glancing over the sunrise again.

Jim heard his brother approach before she saw him, Daniel’s familiar footfalls against the wooden deck as he emerged from below and headed towards the gathering group leaving for the city.

Once everyone was accounted for, Jim rummaged through the bag over his shoulder, dispersing the necessary funds for any good they would need for their journey to Scotland before taking roll call with his eyes.

It only took a moment. His list was short, but it seemed shorter than he’d expected before he and Daniel were climbing over the side of the boat and into a rowboat to row to shore.

“Are ye worried?” His brother asked him gently.

Jim sighed, he hadn't been expecting Daniel to start this early. “Should I be?”

“I dinna ken, brother. I am not a married man, remember?” The barest hint of a smile playing across his face.

He laughed and began to row toward the shore. “Aye. I remember.”

* * *

The harbor was busier than Jim had expected. The noise of it growing as they rowed them closer, the same panic rising in his veins as the moment he’d realized Melinda was gone, but instead, now it was worry about how she was now.

Was she truly okay?

The wooden jetty looked about as stable as a support beam made of straw, but it didn’t wobble under his brother’s feet when Daniel jumped out of the skiff, and it felt sturdy enough under his own as he stepped onto it, yet, his brother still felt the need to offer a hand to steady him. He took it and let go once he was steady on her feet, fixing his coat and hat.

They continued inland, but it seemed that was what everybody else was doing too. Everyone had their own missions, but he and Daniel were headed to the Costello manor. The cobblestone streets became more crowded as the briny smell of the docks drifted into the background.

When the rest of the group splintered away at a crossroads, he and Daniel went to the stables and found themselves each a horse to ride, making haste in the direction they were told the manor was.

By mid-morning, they reach a fork in the trail by a river and stopped to refresh the horses. Jim led his stead down to the river to drink and fed him an apple or two before unlatching his satchel to pull out the block of goat cheese and bannocks he had packed.  He ate quickly and put away the rest of the cheese before he bent down to roll up his breeches.

He stepped into the water, scooping some into his hands to take a drink. The water felt soothing as it ran down his parched throat before he swung himself back up into the saddle.  Night fell without him noticing that the time had even passed as he rode down the main road. Though by the look on Daniel’s face he hadn’t been aware either, as he glanced up at the dimming sky while they were almost as far away from the docks as they could have been without stepping outside the city.

The manor was approaching in their view and he smiled with ease. He was nearly there. He could almost smell Melinda’s lavender aroma. He couldn’t get there quicker.   
Finally, hours later, Jim saw the welcoming stone walls of the Castello manor. As he and Daniel rode to the stables and were shown inside, his heart felt as though it was burst through his chest.

They were shown to a sitting room where there was a large balcony that outlooked various over the top gardens filled with beautiful, exotic flowers. Jim couldn’t find it in him to sit still and walked out onto the balcony to clear his mind.

When he heard footsteps behind him, he had expected his brother to be there, but instead, he was graced with the sight of his wife.

Melinda.

His sweet, beautiful Melinda.

“You are a sight for sore eyes,” she said, stepping closer to him and before she had the chance to grab hold of his hands, he wrapped both of his arms eagerly around her.

Jim stroked her cheek, his hand warm against her cool cheek. She reached her hand up and held his, he was trembling.  “Oh God, Melinda. I thought I lost ye.” He bent his head to kiss her forehead. “What were ye thinkin’… gettin’ yerself captured like that?” He laughed from deep in his chest.

She raised her eyebrows and he nearly thought he would have to escape her fist, but instead, she laughed with him. “Is that what we are saying now?” She asked.

“No. Never... Tis only a joke,” he said as his hand smoothed against her forehead in small strokes. “Are ye alright? Did they hurt ye? I swear I will find Rick… and will make this right if he did.” He continued to stroke her cheek, his hand warm against her cool skin.

She reached her hand up and held his, he was trembling. She raised her eyebrows again, sighing. “Jim… it is a long story,” she gave his hand a gentle squeeze and laid her head back on his chest. “Not now. I only wish to enjoy your company now. Not the sorrows of my time away from you.”

Jim nodded. “I told ye that I would never ask ye of something ye did not wish to do,” he said and sighed. “I don’t know what I’d do if ye were taken from this Earth by Rick. I dinna think I could bear it.”

He could oblige her wishes for now, out of his love for her, but he needed to know what had happened while she was aboard the Kotu Kral as a prisoner. He didn’t have enough faith in his memories of Rick to trust him at all with keeping her safe. If she were truly unscathed from her time with such a man, he had to know.

He felt tears well up in his eyes and that brought tears to Melinda’s eyes. She reached her hand up just in time to place her thumb against his cheek and catch the first tear that slid down his cheek.

“I thought of you day and night. It kept me sane,” she whispered. “I am here. In one piece. Thanks to my sister’s dutiful guard, Ned.”

He smiled and leaned in to press closer into their embrace. “I must meet this man and thank him. He is forever in my debt.”

She nodded. “There is much to speak of, my love. Much has happened in the days since you set to sail here. Katherine has had her child, a healthy boy.” She explained, voice then turning flat. “But Mister Castello has fallen ill. The doctors are not sure if he will survive.”

“Oh,” Jim said, nodding. “That is… unfortunate for Mister Castello. How has your sister taken to the news?”

Melinda tried to withhold her laugh. “She is coping,” she replied. "She has embraced her role as a mother and is very strong... no need to worry about her."

He smiled and nodded. “I see. I had no doubts about her strength... as ye are very strong. Will we be staying n Spain for a bit of time?” He asked.

“If you don’t mind,” she replied. “Katherine will inherit her husband’s merchant success and needs time to get everything together in Mister Castello’s last days. Thankfully, Katherine gave him an heir and she and the baby will be provided for, but she wishes to leave this strange place. I was hoping we could find a place for her at Leoch?”

“That would be wonderful. Would her guard, Ned, be accompanying her?” He asked.

She nodded. “Yes, but he is more than just her guard. They are very close,” she said, smirking.

“Are they now?” He could sense there was something she was not telling him but supposed he would come to learn whatever secret she was hiding in time.

“Yes. Very,” she said, winking. “You will see what I mean.”

“I love ye, Melinda. I dinna ken if it’s too soon to say now... or if ye need more time, but I can only hope ye love me as I surely love ye, Melinda. My body and soul.” He confessed and pressed his face into the crook of her neck and she slowly brought one hand up to hold his head as he cried.

He loved her and she was safe in his arms again. He was never going to let her out of his sight again.   



	10. Chapter 10

It had been nearly a month since Melinda and Jim were reunited in Valencia and while she knew that her husband wanted to go home to Scotland, he had stayed in Spain with her while she helped Katherine.

For her. To help her heal and yet she couldn’t find the courage to tell him the full truth of what had happened while she was aboard the Kotu Kral. She just couldn’t.

Instead, she filled her days helping Katherine in her first few weeks as a mother. A beautiful baby boy, who she adoringly called Edward, Eddie for short. While helping Katherine and being with the baby had been absolutely extraordinary, she now began to feel the stirrings of guilt whenever she looked at her husband.

She had to tell him one day.

In the three weeks since the baby was born, it had been sleepless for the entire household. New babies were adorable but had the cry of a lion, waking everyone at all hours of the night.

Once she had woken in bed to find Jim gone. She crept through the hallways to see him sitting by the fire with little Eddie nestled in his arms. He spoke softly to him, words she could hear from afar, but the expression on his face, it was overwhelming, to say the least.

If he was this way with their nephew, what would he be like with their own child?

For so long she had just wanted to forget about what had happened to her on Rick’s boat. That once the bruises and her busted lip had gone, she would never have to tell Jim what had happened to her if she pushed it to the back of her mind, but that wasn’t an option.

Not when she could not bear the touch of her loving husband without every little detail coming back to her. She couldn’t keep pushing him away. It hurt her every time she had to watch his sad eyes look at her.

She had to tell him, in order to get past it all. In order for them both to move on.

Melinda cradled her right hand with her left as she sat up in bed beside him, fighting the rush of tears that threatened to never stop once let loose.

“Melinda...”

She heard the rustling of bed and felt the sheets move underneath the blanket before Jim sat up and turned toward her, gently placing his right hand behind her head and kissing her forehead.

“Lass, ye’re awake... are ye crying?” He spoke softly, voice still sleep-ridden 

Between the overwhelming fear that shook his voice and the beginnings of dawn peeking into the window, she realized she had likely been lying beside him thinking about telling him the truth for several hours.

“I am alright,” she reassured him, surprised at the raspiness currently blanketing her own vocal cords. She slowly rested her left cheek against Jim’s right shoulder. “I suppose I was shedding a few tears…”

“Ye still are,” he said, tracing his thumb against her face to wipe them away. “Are ye sure ye are alright?”

She sadly nodded, and he squeezed her closer to him. “There is something I need to tell you, that I should have told you a long time ago,” she whispered and she turned her gaze towards his with a heavy heart.

Wrapping his right arm around her shoulders, he tugged her closer and kept his piercing blue eyes directly on her. “Dinna fash about my feelings, Melinda, tell me what ye must. I am worried about ye.”

“There was more to what I told you about the Kotu Kral,” she swallowed thickly, “After the attack on the Sapphire… you know that I was brought to Rick and that he made his men lock me below…”

Though his face masterfully donned the mask that smoothed over his warring emotions, she knew his eyes were his weakest defense. They always were. Concentrated on her, they flickered between outright devastation, helplessness, and guilt. 

He nodded, wanting her to continue. His arm disappeared from behind her back and rested underneath her chin, bringing her closer.

“I do not wish to tell you,” she whispered as her eyes fell closed. More tears rolled down her cheeks as she leaned into his embrace. “You will never look at me the same.”

“Nothing will change how I feel for ye.” The sapphires in his eyes burned brighter from the sudden sheen of tears, his fingers delicately tracing the right side of her jaw before finding refuge in her tangled mess of brown hair. “I need to know, Melinda.”

It required every ounce of strength in her to open her eyes and look at him, sitting up a little. “There was a man… one of the pirates who found me and brought me below. Rick called him Lom.” She spoke faintly, and the fingers of his right hand entwined with her left as he pulled them onto his lap. “He came to take from what he wanted… and he did. When Rick came later, I thought he would too… but he didn’t.” 

His thumb lightly traveled the worn lines of her fingers, and her stomach twisted painfully once he reached the smooth gold wedding band she wore. The simple movement reminded her of the permanent pain she had experienced at the hands of Lom, dead or not, and the confession she had just given Jim, contemplating how not to fall apart.

“I can see yer thoughts tumblin’ around in yer head, Melinda.” Jim’s accurate observation prompted her eyes up towards his, concern and love flowing from his own as he squeezed her hand. “I am here, my sweet. Ye dinna have to face them alone.”

The comfort he wanted to give her viciously collided with the anger and pain raging in her blood, and she released some of it in a deep exhale as she rolled her shoulders back, brought her knees up towards her chest, and squeezed his hand in return.

“Thank you,” she whispered and a sudden flashback left her unable to continue, and she felt a chill run through her. “I do not know if I can tell you any more.”

She stared at the wall as she placed a hand on her cheek, remembering the slap Lom had given her when she wouldn’t look him in the eye. As her teary gaze returned to Jim’s, the single thread that held her composure together reached its last frayed end, for she could never have imagined the depths of sorrow and helplessness she had encountered.

“I am so sorry, Jim,” she choked out feebly, failing to craft any perfect combination of words that wouldn’t vastly underestimate her guilt in not being able to protect herself. “I tried… I — I — I tried...”

“Oh, mo chridhe. I know ye did.” His voice carried a similar constriction as he let go of her hand and cradled the back of her head. “Dinna blame yerself. Ye were so brave, staying alive… I know ye were and that ye did everythin’ ye could.”

She shook her head inches away from his own, shutting her eyes in an attempt to stop the exodus of tears. “It was not enough, I am afraid. I should have punched him... I should have tried harder.”

“Ye did what was best at the moment, Melinda. He could have killed ye… and what if ye’d hurt yer pretty little hand?” He asked, pressing a kiss to her soft skin with a small smirk that made her laugh at the moment. “I am only happy to have ye with me now, ye ken? I can keep ye safe… where no one will ever hurt ye again.”

His firm yet loving words unwound the emotional web she was currently tangling herself in. He inched closer, adjusting their stiff bodies against the uncomfortable headboard they were leaning against.

“It isna yer fault that ye had to face him alone.” Though Jim remained solidly fixated on her, the slight quiver and sudden tightening of his lips revealed that he also was at the edge of the precipice, right beside her. “I am so sorry I wasna able to protect ye.” The glow from the morning light briefly illuminated the newly formed tears in his eyes before he quickly blinked them away, shaking his head in the process. “If I hadna let that monster Rick take ye from me… none of this would have happened if I’d not been so reckless in my decision to stop in Kincardine.”

“You stopped because I asked you to,” she reminded him, foreseeing his own emotional entanglement he was creating. “We made the decision together, and you can’t take the blame for the attack on the Sapphire yourself.”

Jim shook his head again, and for the first time since she had seen him again, she could see how exhausted he was. How distraught these past few weeks of trying to find her have left him. His shoulders slumped a bit deeper; the lines around his eyes were more prominently etched and he’d leaned his head back against the headboard, unable to look at her as he spoke this time.

“It was my failure to act that put ye in danger. I should have stayed below with ye… and I vowed that I will do everything in my power to ensure that will never happen again.” A few more tears fell from his eyes as he untangled his right hand from her left and placed it against her cheek, flushed from the heat of the fire. “I gave them all the power they needed to hurt us, and I almost lost you.”

“You didn’t know that he would hear about you making port, Jim. You cannot blame yourself either.” Her aching exhaustion resulted in tears flowing more freely, his words having spotlighted the harsh reality of how close they’d been to losing each other. “The crew did the best they could to protect the ship, but there were more of them… and they were better with their swords. You did the best you could and I am with you now.”

A natural silence fell between them, their minds reflecting on the immense weight of the men who had died on the ship that day. Jim stroked the curved line of my jaw, sighing deeply as he studied the emotions flitting across her face. 

“I still should have been the one to protect ye. And because I couldn’t, you lost something that was precious to ye… I canna heal ye from what took that day… but I can try to be there for ye as much as I can.” He glanced down as he reached for her hand again, his thumb touching her ring again.

Her eyes eventually followed his downwards, and a formidable weight sat squarely on her chest as she watched his fingers graze across her ring again. “When we were apart, your ring was a lifeline.” She sensed the slight stiffening-and-relaxation of his movements that traveled as quick as lightning through his body — a visceral reaction he couldn’t ward off whenever we talked about those twenty-some days she was apart from him. “I could always look down and know that everything we shared was real. I could remember you… and the moments of happiness and love we had shared together. They kept me strong through everything, knowing you would come, and that you wouldn’t give up. Even if it didn’t end up exactly like that, now, being here with you, I think… It will—I will be alright...”

He interrupted her, moving his hand back to rubbing her back soothingly, “Ye will be, mo ghràidh. I know it. Ye are one of the bravest people I know.”

She settled against his chest, her hand lingering over her heart. “Thank you. That is a true compliment,” she whispered.

This time, when he took it gently, her fingers curled around hers. “I love ye, Mel.” He said leaning his forehead against hers.

“Oh, Jim. I love you too.” She whispered and she briefly gripped his hand tightly, adding her own physical emphasis to the sentiment. “Would you like to see the sketches I drew of you?”

Jim flashed the closest thing to a full smile she’d seen from him in days as the beginning of a chuckle rumbled from his chest. “Aye, I would.”

Framing his worn face, she leaned in the last few inches and kissed him chastely. As she slowly went to move and grab the ledger she still had sitting on top of the table not far the bed, but he pulled her back to kiss her generously this time, lingering a few seconds longer before pulling away and moving to grab it himself.

“So… he gave you this?” He asked, looking at the ledger cover slowly as he grabbed it from the table in front of the sitting couch.

She slowly moved out of bed, her nightgown slowly moving to cover her legs as she walked toward him. She sat down and he moved to sit beside her, opening the ledger to take a look inside.

“Yes. Rick was odd. He could be kind and vicious in the same moment. One day he kept asking me questions when he brought me food. I usually did not reply, but after some time I did.” She whispered, slowly opening it to the first page. “I told him that I liked to draw and he gave me this… and some colored pencils.”

“That was gracious of him,” he sighed and flipped through the pages slowly, realizing quickly that most of them were of him before he got to the first one of her sister’s side profile. “Ye wasted that much space on this mug?” He asked, a slight blush on his cheek.

“I find you particularly handsome in my book,” she whispered with a smile, slowly moving her hand behind him to run her hand up and down his back. The raw tenderness in his eyes as they met again sent her over the emotional precipice and an involuntary sniffle shook her upper body as a few tears flowed down her cheeks. “You like them?”

“Of course,” he said while sliding his fingers across her cheeks to wipe her tears away. “Ye are very talented in my eyes.” He drew her towards his chest and began rubbing her back in steady circles. “Thank ye for drawing me, lass.”

Melinda nodded slowly, smiling as she found the gentle curve in his neck that fit her head perfectly. She slowly lowered her hands down his chest as her body felt as though it was rid of a bit of the fear and heartache that she carried in her bones.

“Jim,” she whispered, catching his attention to look over at her as she pressed a kiss to his neck. “Let’s go to bed.”

“Aye,” he smiled.

* * *

_ Did we really make him? That man… and I? How could he make something so beautiful and precious? It had to me… not him. Never him. _

Katherine smiled, holding her nursing son to her breast and closing her eyes as she listened to the little sucking sounds he made and relished in the feel of his little fingers curling around her finger.

She was exhausted, sore, unkempt, and so unbelievably happy. At three weeks old, Eddie was perfect. Virtually his entire tiny life had been spent sleeping, crying, and suckling from his mother ten or so times a day, but Katherine was unable to remember ever loving anything or anyone more. Except maybe Ned. 

His eyes were nearly precisely that same shade of brown as hers and he had a small patch of dark hair on his little head already. He also had ten perfect toes, ten perfect fingers, and a contented expression on his face whenever he slept that she loved.

“Was that good, sweet boy?” Katherine cooed to her sleepy baby once she had finished and burped.

Eddie blinked his big eyes slowly and nestled closer to his mother, settling down for what she hoped would be a nice sleep. She leaned down to place a chaste kiss on her son’s forehead.

The door to the room opened slowly and she saw as Ned shuffled in, face red once he noticed she was underdressed.

“Milady, I only just now received your page… but I should go since you are indisposed,” he said slowly, keeping his head lowered and hat tipped down even further to try and cover his eyes.

“No. Stay. I should only be a moment. If you would just turn around I can fix my nightgown,” she said sheepishly, cheeks blushing as well as she slowly moved her son to lay on the bed beside her while she fixed her nightgown and then picked him up again.

Eddie was a good sleeper when he did happen to sleep, but that was still hard to come by for now.

“You can turn around, Ned,” she said as she settled back into bed with her son nested onto her chest.

She had not had the chance to see him since Edward was born, mostly because he had been reassigned to watch over her husband on his deathbed in her place. She knew that he would not have been able to come to her unless he was gone.

As Ned turned around, he slowly walked toward her with a smile on his face. A sad smile, however.

“I am happy you have finally come to see me,” she said softly.

“As am I, milady,” he said, kneeling beside the bed. “Though I am the messenger of bad news. Your husband has passed. The flu took him.”

She nodded, knowingly. “It was a nasty one. He was not kind-mouthed, but he could have been worse, I suppose. May he rest in peace. He gave me my son.” She whispered in reply as she looked down at her son. “Would you like to meet him?” She slowly raised her head to look at Ned and smiled at him.

“I would gladly like to me the lad, milady.” He said, moving in a bit closer to her. “Have you chosen a name for him yet?”

“Yes. I have. Edward, but I call him Eddie,” she said, slowly easing his head up slightly for him to get a better look at him. Then she had an idea. “Would you like to hold him?”

“You trust me to?” He asked, a slightly shocked expression on his face.

“Of course, I do. I could trust you with anything,” she whispered and slowly eased her son into his arms, showing him how to support his head as Melinda had shown her. “Here, just make sure to hold his head carefully.” As she watched him cradled Eddie in his arms she smiled and leaned back to relax in bed. 

It was a nice picture. One she could see happening again with him in the future, given the chance.

_ I wish he was yours. God, I wish he was yours. _

“What is on your mind, milady?” He asked, pulling her away from her thoughts.

“Only in awe of you. You happen to look quite handsome with a babe in your arms, Ned, if I do say so,” she said softly, smiling. “I was only admiring the picture in front of me.”

He blushed and smiled. “You honor me, milady. Such kind words.”

“You know, I have told you a million times that you can call me Katherine in private…” she whispered, brow furrowing. “Why don’t you?”

“It is a privilege that I cannot bear… I do not trust myself not to forget to say it in front of others,” he said, shaking his head. “I do not wish to cause you any harm.”

“Ned,” she whispered. “You are too honorable for your own good.” She shook her head. “I have always liked that about you. It was what made your different from the other stable boys… they would always just stare at me. That’s why I was so distrusting at first.”

“Yes, I know. But in their defense, you were always mighty beautiful, especially to us lowly stable boys,” he said, slowly moving to sit beside her and slowly move her son back into her arms. “Your son takes after you. He will be a strong boy. It is truly a blessing.”

“Yes, it is.” She said, looking at him then hopefully. “Do you believe I will be a good mother?”

“Katherine, if there is one thing I am certain… it is that you will be a good mother.” He said, glancing around the room to ensure they were alone before he leaned forward to kiss her forehead, then leaned in to press their faces together. “You have always been one to open your heart and love far too easily.”

She smiled and leaning up to peck his lips and then slowly pull back to look at him. “If one day, you were given a chance to be with me… would you take it?” She asked.

“How could you asked me such a thing, Katherine?” He said, looking down at the baby in her arms. “I could not take care of you… or Edward. How could I take a chance when I could not provide for you in the future?”

She was pleased to hear her name roll off his tongue, especially now.“Ned, we would have enough money… my late husband left enough for me and the baby. We could even stay with my sister and her husband after we travel to Scotland once Edward is a little older. I have spoken to them about it.” She said, reaching over to touch his face. She turned his chin so he would look at her. “Would you come with? Or go home to England?”

“If there was any chance that you would give me... “ He whispered and smiled at her. “How could I not come with and be with you?”

She nodded, smiling. “In the meantime, I will look forward to spending time with you on the boat.” She said, knowing they would have to be discreet as they had been until they left for Scotland.

“As will I, Katherine,” he replied. “I will look forward to a day when I work fear having to speak your name in front of someone.”

“Me as well,” she said happily.


	11. Chapter 11

Katherine sat in the rocking chair, Edward tucked to her chest as she nursed. Melinda had come to have lunch with her and was talking to her about the plans for when they would leave for Scotland in a few days' time.

"It will all go together as planned this time," Melinda said softly. "At least, Jim and I believe it should. You are sure that Ned saw the Kotu Koral sail out of the port? It hasn’t returned?”

She looked up at her, seeing the worry and panic on her sister’s face. It was not something she was used to seeing. Usually, Melinda was stone when it came to keeping her emotions to herself. “Yes. I am sure. If it will ease your worries, Ned can write to the harbormaster to make sure.”

“Yes. That would ease my worries,” Melinda whispered. “Thank you.”

As Edward finished feeding, she brought the now sleeping babe up to her shoulder and patted his back gently. Her son was much smaller than anyone had thought he would be, so the midwives insisted that she ate every two hours instead of four, for now, but her boy just seemed happy to get his fill.

The little burp that sounded in her ear caused Melinda to glance up at her and smiled. "Did that come from him?"

"I hope you know I'm more dignified than that, sister," she said with a giggle. "I take it as he ate well."

Melinda chuckled. "I think he agreed."

"Alright, it's your turn to hold him. I am getting a little tired," she said.

"Go lay down then, Katherine. I can watch him until he needs to eat again," Melinda said as she slowly moved out of her chair and picked up Edward from her. “Besides it will be good practice.” As her sister took him closer to the fire to see him better, her brow turned down in concern.

“What's wrong?" Her voice sounded quick and afraid.

"It's only his coloring. Eddie is a little yellow… I have heard some mother’s call it jaundice," Melinda said, trying to reassure her in a way. "But it has a very easy solution."

"What?" She asked.

"Sunlight," Melinda said happily. "We should take him outside."

* * *

It was Ned's idea to sit within the gardens of the manor. Feeling that would be the safest and most optimal place for sunlight, so Melinda had asked Jim to accompany them as well, but he had yet to join them. 

They had spent most of the day apart besides the few short moments they had together while breaking their fast in bed together and hoped that he would have time in his day to meet them in the gardens. She always enjoyed the feel of him holding her hand as they walked together.

Much like Ned and Katherine now, but they walked side by side as her sister held Edward in her arms, and she followed as they walked together toward a sunny and grassy area. Ned spread out a blanket on the grass and helped her sister get settled before moving to stand behind her.

Melinda thought it was rather noble of him to still put so much effort in to stay apart from her sister still. “You can sit with us, if you would like, Ned.” She said, walking over to him first and placing his hand on her shoulder.

“I am fine here, milady. In case anyone was to walk by,” Ned said with a curt nod.

“Ned, please, sit with us. If anyone had anything to say, I will as well,” she said, giving him a small smile as she moved to sit beside her sister. "Now, Katherine, you want to get as much of his skin exposed to the sunlight as you can.”

"Is the shade alright?" Katherine asked, leaning against the large tree behind her.

"You don't want direct sunlight on him so young, so the shade of the tree is good,” she said, pulling out her sketchbook and flipping to a new page. Even if Rick had given this to her, she enjoyed that he had reminded her of her passion for drawing.

Her sister sat up to unswaddle the blanket from the baby in her arms who immediately began fussing as his skin was exposed to the air. A cry came from Eddie, but it was soon soothed as Katherine leaned back against the tree, undid the top of her dress slightly, and held the baby against her chest.

"It's okay, my sweet boy," her sister cooed to the baby, running her finger down his chubby cheek.

Melinda slowly turned her head back to begin drawing, choosing one of the flowers in the nearby as her subject to draw inspiration from, yet changed a few things to add her own style to it. Ned slowly sat beside her sister once the baby had settled, and she smiled.

“Glad to see you finally sat down and joined us,” she said as he began to finally get comfortable around them.

Ned had even leaned a bit closer to Katherine even and held Edward carefully in his arms in a bit more sunlight, sharing a knowing look with her and then turning to look at her sister. As she continued to sketch her flower she noticed Jim came out of the brush and towards her, a smile on his face.

“Hello. I am glad you could make our acquaintance,” she said as he came to sit beside her, picking up her hand and placing it on his knee.

“Aye, I was only just speakin’ wi’ my brother for a moment there, lass. Dinna ken I was late until I saw ye all sitting here. My apologies,” he said, giving her hand a squeeze. “Everything is settled for our journey to Leoch.”

“Good. I cannot wait for you to show me your home,” she said, smiling at him. “I am also eager to enjoy more time with you.”

“As I am proud to bring ye home, lass. I have put my brother in charge of manning the ship. I want to spend as much of my time with ye as I can before we return to Leoch and my duties take over.” He said as he looked past her to watch her sister and the baby in her arms. “Though I canna wait to have a bairn of our own too.”

“Yes, that sounds like a marvelous plan,” she whispered and brought his hand to her lips to press a soft kiss to his palm. “We will have a family one day soon.”

* * *

They were drunk on Katherine’s late husband’s best wine. Or rather, Melinda was drunk. Jim had only had ale at dinner, and was tipsy at worst, while the Scottsman had plied her with glass after glass of the potent win.

She only realized sometime during her fifth glass but was far too gone to stop now. As she took another sip, she glanced over at her husband, who was deep in conversation with his brother. She didn't know what they were talking about, nor did she care. She was entranced by the planes of Jim’s face in the firelight, the defined jawline, the sparkling blue eyes, the curl of his hair. 

Melinda’s attraction to him was undeniable. It had started earlier than she was willing to admit, and had only gotten stronger as she knew him better after they had married. Between his exuberant lovemaking, the gradual, sincere opening of his heart, and then being torn away from him. She was becoming quickly enamored of her young husband.

He broke out in a gale of startled laughter at something Daniel said, and she found herself involuntarily smiling at him. He caught her watching and gave her one of his solemn, owlish attempts at a wink.

"He’s rather smitten with you, is he not?" Katherine had noticed them looking at one another. She didn't wait for an answer. "I recognize the look. It reminds me of Ned."

“Yes, I believe he is. I am smitten with him as well,” she said, glancing at her sister.

Jim came over soon. Once their eyes met, both of them had difficulty looking away. Had she been sober, she doubtless would have glanced away and found a way to make conversation with her sister, but as it was, she couldn't think of anything but Jim.

He excused himself and held out his hand, explaining to her sister that they would need to be up early to begin their journey to Scotland. Melinda swayed embarrassingly as she stood, staying upright largely thanks to Jim’s strong arm around her waist. Katherine looked amused, rather than irritated, by their departure.

She couldn't help giggling as he made their way from the great hall. In addition to brightening her mood, the wine had loosened her tongue and made her mush. "My hero! You've rescued me again. As much as I love my sister, she can talk my ear off.”

Jim tightened his grip on her grinned down at mischievously. "Och, that won't do. She canna have all of yer time today."

She smiled and nodded, leaning into him. "Well, perhaps you deserve to have some of my time today, love. You have earned it, after all."

A corner of his mouth quirked up. He looked intrigued. She crooked her finger to draw him down to her, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him thoroughly. He chuckled against her mouth and returned her embrace.

When they parted to breathe, she told him sincerely, "Since I came here with Rick… even after I was saved by Ned rarely have I felt safe, but since you have arrived I do."

His answering smile was broad. "'Tis as I told ye, lass. Ye have nothing to fear, so long as I am wi' ye." He confessed.

He paused to kiss the crown of her head. He moved down to the nape of her neck and nuzzled it, utilizing a secret he had discovered. She was very sensitive there, and it raised a pleasant shiver along her spine. She let out an involuntary moan.

He told her, "Eventually I'm going to discover everything there is to know about ye, Melinda. Though perhaps I'll start by simply unwrapping ye when we get back to our chambers." He began prematurely by tugging the kerchief from around her shoulders and upper chest, then by none so discreetly tugging at the laces of her bodice in illustration.

After a few measly moments of letting his mouth on her skin get the best of her, she slowly pushed him away and tilted down the hallway under her own power, only bumping gently against the walls twice. Jim followed closely with his hands on her waist.

But when faced with the long, winding staircase that led to their bedchambers, she found herself stymied by an acute lack of balance. She nearly brained herself on the stones before they made it to the first landing, so Jim swept her up to carry her back to their room.

She melted against him. He was warm, an oven unto himself, and somehow soft and solid all at once. Melinda nuzzled into the hollow of his throat and felt the vibration of his answering chuckle. “My knight in shining armor,” she hummed.

He smelled of musk and sweat and man, and he wanted to taste him, so he did. His flavor was salty and enticing and made her hungry for more, so she indulged herself and lapped at the dip behind his clavicle. This elicited a groan, which she interpreted as a request to continue, so she began to nip at the collarbone lightly with her teeth.

It did not have quite the effect she expected. He let out a decidedly unmanly squeal and nearly dropped her. "That tickles!” He said, chuckling. “Stop that! Stop that now!"

She didn't. She was far too amused by the ridiculously girly laughter emanating from her imposing warrior Scottish husband. Instead, she redoubled her efforts, forgetting that things would not go well for her if he lost all motor control and dropped her down the stairs.

Rather than hold on, Melinda fluttered her fingers against his neck, underarms, and ribs. She wouldn't stop despite his vocal protests, and Jim barely managed to pin her to the wall before she sent them tumbling to their deaths.

He wrapped both her wrists in one of his hands and held them above her head. "Och! D'ye think that's funny? Are ye satisfied wi' yerself?" His voice held no anger, only amusement.

She tried to nod solemnly, but failed. "I do, and I am, and I think I just won."

"Oh, a battle, is it?" He nodded solemnly. "I didna ken we were fighting, else I'd have jumped in the fray earlier. Let's see how ye like being on the other end."

Then he proceeded to tickle her mercilessly. He used his free hand, teeth, and tongue to full effect, leaving tiny red marks along her neck, collarbone, shoulders, arms, and the exposed top of her bosom. She squirmed and tried to pull free but to no avail.

Melinda’s inebriation was no match for his strength. She tried to protest when he hitched up her skirts to pinch her bottom and wiggle his fingers along the sensitive skin of her upper thighs, but succeeded only in arousing him if the stiffness pressed up against her stomach was any indication.

This she used to her advantage. She bit her lower lip to try to contain her laughter and began to writhe against him, undulating her spine and twisting her hips. He seemed to appreciate this, growling in satisfaction above her.

And when her bosom escaped from her bodice, her kerchief lost somewhere outside the great hall, the laces and stomacher now fallen victim to their playful struggles, he released her wrists to cup her breasts. She dropped her head back against the cool wall and enjoyed the sensation of Jim squeezing and fondling her.

He said triumphantly, "Ahhh. I win, then. Here are my prizes!"

Melinda had decided somewhere between the second and third landings that she wanted to win their little battle at all costs, and as soon as possible. "Take me to bed, Jim," she begged, her abating laughter making her sound even more breathless than she was.

He grinned at her agreeably and tugged her up the stairs. While he was slightly off balance going around a bend, she managed to push him against the wall, much as he had done to her, and began rubbing at him through his kilt.

He let out a groan and asked unnecessarily, "What are ye doing, lass?"

She reached under his kilt and took him in hand. She gave him a few strokes and explained coquettishly, "I am winning."

"Ahhh, Melinda!" His eyes darted around. "You canna do this here! Someone could come around at any moment..."

Yet, he made no move to stop her. She grinned up at him, feeling bold and reckless. "Let them watch." She added a strategic twist of my wrist, and he gasped. His eyes squeezed shut as his head fell back against the wall.

Melinda felt drunk, not only on wine, but on the power she had over this man, her powerful warrior husband. "I can do whatever I want, Jim." In the illustration, with a firm grip, led him up the last two steps to the next landing, and pushed him into a shadowed corner. "See? Like a puppy on a leash!"

"What did ye call me, ye wicked temptress?" He cursed and gasped again.

"Nothing, darling." She leaned up on tiptoe to bring her lips closer to his ear. "Do you want to know another secret of mine?"

"I don't know if I do." He looked as dazed as she felt.

She dropped to her knees and licked her lips slowly and deliberately, staring up at him. "I love the way you taste." And then proceeded to use the most effective weapon in her arsenal.

She crawled under his kilt and took him straight into her mouth, wasting no preliminaries. She felt a little jolt as his knees began to buckle, but he stopped himself from falling by bracing himself against the wall. 

He called out her name, so she added the use of a hand for good measure. "Sweet holy sin!" he cried out, much too loudly.

Melinda emerged momentarily to say, "I thought you told me that marriage made this sin into a sacrament." Before he could answer, she resumed her task.

"Ahh... Melinda, please... We must get... ohhhh... off the stairs! Someone will... mmmm..." His words said one thing, but his hands said another. He tangled his fingers in her hair, but instead of pushing her away, he pulled her closer.

She redoubled her efforts, drawing on him with hands, lips, and tongue. He made a strangled sound above her, which she heard clearly despite the thick wool about her head. This was followed by a Gaelic curse and breathless muttering.

If Melinda was fully in her right mind, she easily would have divined his meaning from his tone alone, but in her blurry state, she badly wanted to know what he was saying. She retreated briefly to ask, but all she received in response was pressure against her skull guiding her back. She used her tongue to tease him, but she refused to do what he wanted. "Now, who won again? Are you sure it was you?"

He laughed, this time with an edge of desperation. "If this is losing, I dinna ken what it means to win..."

She lapped delicately at him but refused to satisfy him. "Not until you acknowledge my victory." And then she bent to work again.

"Ah! Melinda!" As she gave him what he wanted, he gave her what she wanted. "Ahhh... Ye seductress! Mmmm... Has the devil himself sent ye to me? Nnhhh... Ye may do what ye want wi' me! Ye've enchanted me, have ye not? Ye've... ohhhh... bewitched me! I've gladly fallen under yer spell, and ahhh..." With a particular swirl of her tongue and application of pressure, he started to gasp like a fish out of water. "Holy God! I'll follow ye straight to hell and back, just dinna stop!"

She was enjoying herself immensely, nearly as much as he, though she could have done without the suffocating plaid over her head. Sounds were still muffled by his kilt. So when footsteps sounded on the steps, neither of them noticed until raucous voices began to echo up the stairwell.

"Where're ye goin' in such a rush, lass?" It sounded like Daniel. "And what's that in yer hand?"

"Nothing!" came the short reply.

Melinda pulled away, trying and failing to suppress her laughter at Jim’s forlorn expression. “Don’t give me that look,” she laughed.

"Ye look like someone lit yer bum on fire, Lady Katherine! Mebbe I can help ye put it out!" This one was Angus, one of the higher ranked crew members on the Blue Sapphire followed by gales of laughter.

Katherine sounded indignant. "Let me pass!" Then, after what sounded like a struggle, but didn’t truly concern her too much as it was Jim’s brother she was with. "Give that back!"

"Ah, the Clancy crest," Daniel declared. "On yer way to bring it to my brother then, are ye? He just headed up already with his new missus. But ye may want to give them a few minutes if ye don't want to see a show of yer sister!"

Melinda winked at her husband then and gave him a little tug under his kilt again. Jim choked out a moan.

Ned’s voice then appeared, offering kindly, "Are you going up, milady? I can escort you to make sure no one gives you any trouble."

"Yes, that would be quite nice,” Katherine said to Ned. “Can I have the brooch returned to my possession, Mr. Clancy?”

“Aye, my lady.” Daniel said. “Have a goodnight lass. Angus, let us go to the ship to make sure everything is in order.”

Jim then quickly helped her up.

“Did they see us?” She hissed at him.

He shrugged helplessly. "I dinna think so. But I wasna payin' heed to anythin' but you! Come now. Let's go!"

Angus then jested from below, "I think I'd like a show. Perhaps I'll take that brooch to the young lord for ye!"

Melinda was still unsteady, and she giggled as she tripped over her own feet. Jim shushed her and kept her from falling. "I must have dropped my brooch in the hall when ye were messing with me."

"Do you want me to ask for it back?" She asked.

He looked at her from head to toe and shook his head vehemently. "No one gets to see you like this but me!"

Melinda realized belatedly that she was still spilling out of her gown. She lacked the dexterity to retie her laces at this point and simply tried to hold her bodice together, but since her kerchief and stomacher were long gone, she was missing the appropriate coverings.

They heard another party coming down the stairs toward them, and Jim tried to arrange her into something resembling modesty. He too failed and was left with no choice but to allow her to be exposed, or to pull her against him to shield her from prying eyes with his own body.

He chose the latter.

She couldn't see who passed behind them, but Jim greeted them cordially.

"Is that them?" Ned had heard them down below. "They left the hall long ago. What are they at?"

"Wouldn't ye like to know, virgin!" Angus replied, to answering gales of laughter.

“That is none of your business anyway. How dare you ask me that in front of a lady,” Ned replied with a hiss. “Let me guide you upstairs, milady.”

"A Dhia, look at the englishman blush! Beet red, ye are!” Daniel laughed. “That's all the answer I needed!"

They didn't wait for them to catch up. Jim tugged her up the next flight of stairs and they got away while his brother was occupied teasing Ned. As they stumbled up the stairs, Melinda tripped once more, so Jim lifted me up again and carried her the rest of the way to their chamber.

* * *

That night, Melinda weighed next to nothing in Jim’s arms. So fragile yet strong at the same time. They were breathing each other so deeply… the heat of the fire in their room had nothing on them. It was about comfort, it was about healing and it turned into so much more so fast. They were an extension of the fire at that moment.

She had resumed her oral attacks on his clavicle, neck, and the shell of his ear as he kicked the door shut with his foot and pressed her against it. He kissed her until she melted into him, then practically tore her bodice open and ravenously descended on her breasts while ridding himself of his belt and kilt.

Before long he lifted her up by her waist and parted her thighs with his knee. He tried to lift her skirts to join them, too impatient to deal with all her layers, but got tangled in her gown and voluminous petticoats. "Where on earth are ye, Melinda? If I dinna find ye soon, I'll burst!"

"Don't you dare! Or don't you remember? Spilling your seed on the ground is a sin in the eyes of God." She grabbed sloppily at him and laughed, terribly amused with her own wit. "Plus you'll make an awful mess, and ruin my dress, and for what?"

Jim whimpered and swatted her hand away. "Stop that, ye wee succubus! Yer makin' it worse! Now help me get this off so I can roger ye properly!"

Melinda tried to help him rid her of her clothing, but all she managed to do was twist herself hopelessly. With a string of Gaelic curses, Jim finally stripped her of her gown, petticoats, bum roll and shift. She bent to untie her garters and roll down her stockings, but he stopped me.

"Leave them on," he whispered in her ear. Then he whirled her around to face him and lean against the solid wooden door and entered her in one long, satisfying thrust. “Melinda," he gasped and even said more, but she neither heard nor understood.

She was lost in the waves of sensation ricocheting through her body. Jim slowed, trying to make it last long enough to give her the same pleasure he was struggling mightily to delay in himself. Yet he could not fully control the power of his hips slamming against her.

The door shook with the impact, as did she. He braced her with one hand planted firmly at the base of her back, and with the other, he reached around and rubbed roughly between her thighs. When he sank his teeth into the juncture of her neck and shoulder, the myriad stimuli overwhelmed her, and she began to convulse uncontrollably from her core. Stars burst from behind her eyelids as Jim called out her name.

She didn't return to full awareness, not even when Jim moved them both to the bed and wrapped himself around her. Instead, Melinda fell into a blissful, drunken, bawdy dream which she apparently began to enact in her sleep, for she woke sometime later astride a very confused (but happy) husband. They enthusiastically enacted the rest of her subconscious desires, and after that, she dreamt no more.

The next morning, she awoke with a pounding headache, messy hair, one remaining stocking crumpled at her ankle, and a foul taste in her mouth. She begged Jim for water, or better yet, wine. They had nothing in their chambers, but stale bannocks and a shriveled apple, so he threw on his clothes and promised to search the kitchens to find her a remedy.

When he opened the door, he stopped short. She rolled over, peeking blearily at him. Jim was prying something out of the wood.

"What's that?" She asked.

"My brooch." An embarrassed flush rose up his neck as he freed the pin. "Apparently someone saw fit to return it to me last night after all. I thought I heard something while we were, ah, occupied, but thought it was just you since you were, well, right here. Ye ken?"

She only dimly recalled the events of the preceding night, but she remembered hearing multiple Clancy men talking about us putting on a show. "Oh, no! Did Daniel and Angus see us? God! Was Ned and my sister there too? I remember hearing all of them!"

He reassured her, "I think they knew we were ahead of them on the stairs, but dinna fash. I helped ye away before they came round. Anyhow, ye couldn't corrupt them if ye tried!" But he said it without looking her in the eye.

"What aren't you telling me, Jim? I remember something else… its fuzzy.” She said, searching her memory from the night before. “Dear Christ, they did see us, didn't they? I can't ever show my face out of this room again! You'll have to sneak me out the window and take me far away!"

He laughed. The bastard only laughed at her. So she pitched a pillow at his head. It was much too soft to provide satisfaction, but the next thing to reach her hand was an empty flagon. Jim saw it coming and leapt nimbly out of the room. The cup bounced harmlessly off the closed door, so she yelled uselessly after him, "Damn you!"


	12. Chapter 12

When the morning arrived and everyone broke their fast, Jim, Melinda, Katherine, Ned, little Edward, and Daniel would leave by horseback and head North West.  They would travel for as long as they could with the baby before making camp for the night and then traveling the last bit up the coast to the port the following day to board the Blue Sapphire for their voyage to Scotland.

“What if Rick finds us, Jim?” Melinda whispered that morning as she stood stroking the bit of hair on Edward’s head as the baby stirred in her sister’s arms.

Katherine was just getting settled on her horse with the help of Ned, the baby swaddled and wrapped in a blanket that was tied around her. Then Ned when to mount his horse and rode over to be beside her, and give them a moment of peace.

“He won’t, Melinda, not if we stick to the plan.” He explained, stroking her cheek lovingly. “The boat wi’ keep the coastline the most we can until we have to make our main voyage across to Scotland. No pirate ship wi’ go in the main view of land, you can count on that.”

“Are you sure?” She asked, eyes filled with worry along with her mind.

It was more than reasonable after everything. He nodded, leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead briefly. “We wi’ be safe on the sea and then we wi’ be safe at Leoch. I promise,” he said softly. “I would even ride with ye if it wi’ ease yer worries.”

He left out the part that if they came across any then he and Daniel would kill them, still, he knew that Melinda would understand that they'd been together long enough now.

“Yes. I would like that,” she said.

“Aye. Then it is time to make our way home,” he said with a smile. 

“We better be going, brother, aye?” Daniel muttered.

Jim gave a curt nod. “Aye, we will.” He led her over to her horse, helping her up he jumped up behind her on Biscuit, his arms wrapping around his wife. He placed a kiss to her head as he made a movement and began to lead everyone out of the manor onto the path.

* * *

The journey to the coast the past few days had been long and tiresome, they moved day and took to making camp once the sun started to set. It had taken longer than they had originally suspected, needing to stop every so often so her sister could feed Edward, but it was not too big of a setback.

“I cannot believe he is but a few weeks old and already spent so much time on horseback,” Katherine said as she glanced down at the sleeping baby nestled against her chest as they rode.

“Yes, but it will only prepare him for the journey on the boat. He has taken to the travels fine enough,” Ned said, smiling at the boy bundled against her.

“He has,” Katherine smiled and then glanced over next to them as she glanced over towards where Melinda rode with Jim. “I hope you are faring well, sister. You look pale.”

“I feel fine. Just not used to riding day after day anymore,” she said, feeling a bit dazed, but thought it only that she hadn’t eaten a proper meal beside bread and cheese since they had left the manor two days prior.

“We canna stop if ye’d like,” Jim said with the whisper of a kiss to her cheek.

“Maybe for a moment. I could use something to eat,” she whispered with a nod and he whistled to his brother and waved him to stop.

“Aye, what are we stopping for, brother?” Daniel asked, pulling his horse around.

“To give the horses a rest and have a bite to eat, huh?” He said, sliding off the horse and then helping her off as well. He held his hand to her forehead. “Are ye sure ye are only hungry, lass? Ye do look a wee bit pale as yer sister said.” He pulled out his flagon of water for her to drink. “Here, drink this. I will get you something to eat.”

His brother did not look as happy to stop but gave no quarrel as he asked for the goat cheese, bread and salted meat that was left in his pack. “We should make it to the Port within the hour, brother. Keep the head and have a drink.”

He brought the food back to Melinda and sat down beside a tree to relax for a few moments.

“Thank you for stopping. I know it may have caused you grief with your brother,” she whispered, glancing up from the bread that she held in her hands.

“Aye, but dinna fash, Melinda,” he said, shaking his head. “My brother may grumble around, but he knows I have authority over him.” He tossed a bit of bread in his mouth and then rustled around his coat pocket, revealing a flask and taking a sip of whiskey. “Would ye like some?”

“Is it your whiskey?” She asked, taking a sip of water.

“Always,” he said with a smile.

“Then no,” she laughed. “Maybe wine or ale, but never whiskey. I don’t have the taste for it.”

“Aye, but know it is always there if ye want it,” he said and then slowly stood. “Take yer time eating, lass. I am going to tend to Biscuit.”

* * *

Settled in a small room that they had to share aboard the ship, it was more of a storage room that had been given to them to use than a cabin for sleeping in, but it would do. It was bigger than anything Ned was used to and it was enough to keep them safe on passage to Scotland.  With Edward against his chest, Ned tried to focus on the boy rather than the rocking of the ship.

“It should not take too long before you get used to it,” Katherine explained softly. “I only hope that the ship will not make Eddie sick as well.” She whispered as she placed a cool cloth against his head, making a fuss of him.

“I will be fine like you said,” he said, pushing her away slightly. “You must not fuss over me. Should we move Eddie?”

“I can take him,” she said, carefully moving her son so that he wouldn’t wake up and holding him against her chest. Katherine brought Eddie over to the makeshift bassinet that he had made with a basket, hay and a soft wool blanket. Then she went to the door and opened it. “Fredrick, do you think you could be so kind as to bring some soup down please?”

“Aye, milady,” the young son of one of the crew members who Jim had kindly told to help with anything they needed was at his feet straight away.

“Thank you, Fredrick,” she smiled at him before closing the cabin door.

“I am not entirely sure I can keep anything down, Katherine.” Looking up at her as she turned around to face him, he was using all his strength not to be sick, though he did manage a smile when she sighed and laughed at him.

“My precious sweet Katherine, do you find me being sick funny?” He hissed, feeling the boat crash against a large wave and move about accordingly.

“Not at all. I am only feeling blessed to be here with you,” she said as she sat down beside him and then moved to lay her head against his shoulder. “I can be as I want to on this boat and no one will know you in Scotland. We can start over.”

“Yes. I suppose we can,” he said, wrapping his arm around her and placed a kiss to her head. “Katherine, there has been something I have been meaning to tell you for some time…”

“What is it?” She asked, glancing up at him with a smile on her face that he did not see often enough.

“I love you, and I always have.” He whispered, slowly bringing his hand to cup her cheek.

“I am not blind, Ned Banks. It so happens that I have loved you too. For a long time,” she said as she slowly leaned up to bring their lips together.

It was then that Fredrick re-emerged with a bowl of soup and Katherine quickly moved to sit up before their lips could meet. It had been so long since their lips had touched and he had gotten so close before the lad interrupted.

It was soon after that he left and she began to try and coax him to eat. There was not much he could say no to when it came to Katherine and he soon was able to eat half of the bowl before she finally finished it for him.

She moved to lay beside him again after having checked to make sure Eddie was still asleep, resting her head on his chest. That was relaxing enough to lull him to sleep.

* * *

Melinda had that look in her eye. Jim knew that look.

“Ye--” He started to say as she gave him a sleepy smile and wrapped her arm around his neck to pull him in for a kiss.

“Mmmm…” She moaned at the feeling of his unusually cool lips meeting her own much warmer set.

“-- should keep yer strength up. Ye havena felt well since we were on the ground. Likely the waves will make it worse, lass.” Jim did his best disentangled from her grip carefully and positioned himself back on the desk. He needed to keep a level head if he planned to make it through the night without begging her to take pity on him and let him take his pleasure.

She momentarily paused her ministrations and gave him a slapdash salute as she turned her attention back to the soup. Through a mouthful, she asked, “What kind of soup is this?”

“Ah, lamb,” he said.

“I haven’t had lamb stew in a long time. Since I was a girl, actually.” She giggled. “It’s marvelous.”

As he watched her abandon the spoon and clumsily pick up the entire bowl, Jim decided to intervene before his new captain’s desk reeked of soup for the remainder of their journey.

“Let me help you,” he took the bowl and held out a spoonful.

Melinda narrowed her eyes at him but reluctantly accepted the offering.

“I made sure to get proper rations for our journey,” Jim said as she ire savored the sip, her hand wandering up his leg to rest hot against his thigh.

The warm soup coupled with her fever had made her feel flush and uninhibited, and -- something else. The slight ache she had felt in her head earlier due to the fever was fading, but a new ache was forming somewhat lower.  He fed her another sip and this time Melinda playfully dodged from side to side making him follow her before opening her mouth wide and capturing the spoon like a kitten pouncing on prey.

“Mrs. Fitz wasted no time putting the rations to work, I can see.” He ignored her antics.

At the third spoonful she shook her head. “Give me the bowl, Jim. I surely can feed myself.” She protested. “Although there is something you could help me with… if you are up to the task.” She set down the bowl and wiped her mouth with a cloth nearby.

“Ye need to rest.” He wanted nothing more than to throw her down on the desk, but she was hurt and ill and needed his care, not his cock. “And what is it they say? Abstinence makes the heart grow firmer, no?”

“Absence,” she replied with a smirk, “And fonder.” Her hand traveled up the hard muscles of his thigh. “I’ve had my fill of absence and abstinence lately, my love.” She leaned in for another kiss. “If anything’s growing firmer from abstinence, it wouldn’t be the heart.”

“That’s verra bawdy talk for a respectable married woman,” he suddenly became too aware of her overheated hand on his body. “And inconsiderate, forbye.”

“Inconsiderate? Why?” Melinda swept a bit of her hair out of her face.

“I’m a wee bit firm myself at the moment,” he stood up and walked a safe distance to the other side of the desk. “What wi’ ye sitting there wi’ yer hair loose and yer nipples starin’ me in the eye, the size of cherries.”

Melinda grinned approvingly at her loose curls and looked down to peek inside her nightgown. Her nipples weren’t erect, but they were plump and flushed from fever. “Well, it’s nothing you haven’t seen before.”

“I have drunk water every day since I was weaned,” he pointed out. “It doesna mean I canna be thirsty, still.”

She climbed up in her chair, trying to balance one knee shakily on the desk to get closer to him. “Bolt the door.”

“Bolt the door?” He asked, smirking now.

“Mm-hmmm.” Melinda leaned in more, trying to capture his lips. “You heard me.”

“Why would I do that?” Jim said, keeping his distance just enough so she couldn’t make contact. “Do I look like the sort of man who would take advantage of my wife that’s no only wounded and boiling with fever, but drunk as well?” He moved forward to nuzzle her nose with his own.

Melinda snorted when she laughed. “I’m not drunk. You can’t get drunk on lamb stew.” As she said the words, though, it dawned on her that through her fever-addled brain, she hadn’t been able to recognize immediately that she possibly found more than just her husband intoxicating tonight.

“Ye can if it’s Mrs. Fitz’s stew.” He replied and she laughed again, huffing a breath in his face. “By the smell of yer breath, there is a whole bottle of Sherry in it.”

“Besides,” she stood up and walked around the desk to prove it to him, “You once told me that you can’t be drunk if you’re standing up.”

“Aye.” He said, nodding.

“Ooh, now--” She stumbled and reached up to wrap her arm around his neck just in time.

“Aye, but ye are hardly standing up, Mel.” His arms enveloped her and he gave in to a kiss. He was used to her skin being cool and dry compared to his -- this was incredibly arousing.

“Stop trying to change the subject,” she whispered and kissed him, “Do I make you firm?”

“Since the day we first met,” he gasped.

“Does it ache?” She asked coyly. “Shall I take a look at it and help ease your tension?”

“You shall not!” He exclaimed. She was playing dirty -- to speak to him this way.  _ Lord, help me. _ “Someone might come in. And I canna think yer looking at it would help a bit.” He tried to pull out of her arms but she tightened her hold.

“Well you can’t tell that until I have looked at it, can you?” She said with a pout.

“And ye will stop talking about it. Because I wouldna use force on a noblewoman such as yerself--” He said, chuckling.

She grabbed him, her sturdy hold encasing his stiff erection in warmth through his breeches. “Oh, my. Heavens, you do have a problem.” She teased.

“Ye have a very healthy grip, for someone with a fever.” He said, strangled.

Melinda laughed and kissed him hard to distract him from the fact that she had started to undo his breeches.

“This must be what it is like making love in hell,” he said as he wrapped his arms around her and reveled in how hot she felt in his arms, “with a burning she-devil.”

“Does my mouth feel hot?” She huskily breathed into his mouth.

“Like lava…” He breathed.

She quickly dropped to her knees, pushed his breeches down and engulfed him.

“Dear, God, Melinda!” Pleasure flooded all of his senses. Her mouth was so hot and wet. His wife had always treated this particular activity with enthusiasm, tonight, however, with her inhibitions gone, her abandon was blissful. She eagerly bobbed up and down as she took him deeper and deeper, licking and sucking as if he was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted. It would be so easy to just hold on and let go--

“No! Someone could come in at any moment!” He had teased her about getting caught before, but right now he was terrified someone would actually walk through the door and see his wife on her knees with him in her mouth like some common whore.

He reached down and yanked her up by her arms. There was an audible, “pop!” and cold air assaulted his engorged flesh. He started kissing her fiercely. He had no fight left in him. He had to have her right now. Jim grabbed her in his arms and spun around to stumble back towards the door. Melinda reached up and fumbled with the heavy iron barrel bolt until it slipped into place.

They continued to ravish each other as they quickly shed the rest of their clothes. He backed her up to a small wooden vanity across from the desk where they had started their tryst.

With a quick shimmy, Melinda’s nightgown fell to the floor and he grabbed her ass firm to bring their lower halves together in an experimental thrust. She gasped at the contact but quickly smiled and twisted in his arms to offer her backside.  Jim gave no hesitation before he aligned and thrust deep inside. It had been a long time since he had had her like this. The sweet-smelling curls of her hair tickling his face, and her hot flesh surrounding his cock was heaven. She was grunting and squirming against his pelvis like a wild--

Then there was a knock at the door.

The hand that had been on its way to grab one of Melinda’s breasts flew up to her mouth instead to muffle a moan.  “Shhh…” He whispered.

“Milord, I wanted to make sure that milady enjoyed the turtle soup?” Mrs. Fitz inquired from behind the door.

“Ye--yes, yes. Very much.” Jim said a silent prayer that she had indeed bolted the door correctly as he continued to drive into her over and over.

“It was a fine piece of lamb. A most elegant beast.” Why was Mrs. Fitz still talking? And why wasn’t Melinda being quiet like he had urged her to be?

Jim brought his hand back up to Melinda’s mouth and this time she bit down.

“Does she wish for more?” Mrs. Fitz continued, “I have made a fresh pot.”

Melinda moaned and for just a moment he thought it could have less to due with pleasure and more to do with the idea of another bowl of the savory soup.

“No, no, no. No, she’s had more than enough.” Jim exclaimed in what he hoped was a controlled voice.

“No, she hasn’t!” Melinda exclaimed with a giggle from behind his hand as she slowly moved it off her face by moving it around.

“Good night, Mrs. Fitz! My wife may like some in the morning, but no more tonight.” Jim bellowed loudly as she groaned into his hand with abandon with each slide of his shaft.

“Good night.” The space behind the bolted door fell quiet.

“Oh my God…” Melinda said giggling. “Do you think she knows?”

He slowed down his rhythm and then turned her around. “I am sure she can recognize the sounds of a man cherishing his wife,” he said as he kissed the side of her face before sharing a sweet kiss.

With renewed confidence that they were indeed alone, and the door was locked, he swept her into his arms and brought her to bed. Once laying together beneath the sheets, he redoubled his efforts to please her.  The glow of desire had been built, slow and careful, to ablaze, and she wrapped her legs around him as he found his rhythm with her, but even the shock of desire could not stop the dreamlike quality of the night.

“I canna, I canna… please tell me ye are close?” He begged.

She knew he was about to lose himself completely. “Yes, yes, yes, Jim, so close, don’t stop.” She cried out. “You feel so good.”

Her body opened to him even more with her orgasm and he felt like he was reaching her soul. He couldn’t remember ever feeling this deep inside of her. He finally let go and let his seed fill her with such force he was sure she could feel each pulse.

He collapsed on top of her while their breathing slowed. “How are ye feeling?” He asked.

“Much better,” she muffled from below him. She was suddenly exhausted. She looked up and caught his eye slightly, though it was hazy. “Thank you.”

“Thank me? For what?” He asked.

“For taking care of me. In all ways.” She blushed.

“My pleasure. Always.” He said. He lifted the blanket off the vanity near them and moved it between their legs as he separated from her. He gently cleaned Melinda’s thighs before gathering her into his arms once again. “Do you want more soup?”

“No,” she laughed, “I’ve had enough for today like you sad. I am quite drunk.”

“Oh, are ye now?” He smiled.

Melinda gave him a sheepish smile. “Yes, I want nothing more than to fall asleep in your arms right now -- to feel safe and comforted for the first night in a while.”

“Aye, mo nighean donn. Always. In all ways.” He whispered in her ear and pulled the warm blanket over them.


	13. Chapter 13

Daylight knifed through Melinda’s heavy eyelids. The ship rolled – and so did her stomach – and she found the bucket helpfully left beside the berth, just in time.

Her arm and head throbbed in time with her racing heart.

When had they made it to the berth? The grain of the polished wood floor dug into the still-healing sores on her legs. Why hadn’t she treated them properly last night?

She looked up, blinking, squinting – saw her shift sprawled across the table at the center of the cabin.

Ah. Bloody Mrs. Fitz and her bloody delicious lamb stew…

The door burst open.

Twin shrieks – Melinda in indignation, Katherine in surprise.

“What are you doing here?” She croaked.

“Where are your clothes?” Her sister giggled.

Melinda crossed her arms – as best as she could – over her chest. “Over there – I would be grateful if you could fetch them. My husband… Jim must have been in quite a hurry to leave them over there.”

Katherine tsked as she crossed the room, picking up her shift and sliding it over her shoulders. Feeling very much like the younger sibling and not the older one, Melinda huffed – but was thankful for the help getting reunited with her clothing.

“You don’t happen to have any water, do you?” She asked.

Her sister drew a waterskin from her basket. “I do. I even brought some fresh bread and soft cheese for you.”

She slowly patted the empty space on the bed, and Katherine gratefully sank beside her, helping her drink from the waterskin, then cut the bread into a slice along with the cheese. “Thank you,” she said after a while. Feeling slightly more human. “Thank you for looking in on me.” She turned – slowly, carefully – to face her girl sister– a woman now – beside her.

“You are welcome, Melinda,” her sister replied kindly. “I am happy to be leaving Spain and am even happier to be with you again.”

Melinda smiled. “I am happy to be with you again too, little sister.”

* * *

The deck heaved once more, and Melinda leaned her head back against the soft sheets of the bed, in pain and disoriented and yet strangely content. As she had many times before, she turned inward. Taking stock of her body – from her toes to her stinging shins, to the bruise forming on her thigh from where she’d knocked into the desk, to the strained muscles in her back where Jim had bent her over last night…

Jim.

Where the hell was he?

There were plenty of footsteps above deck and shouts periodically filtered through the ceiling. Two weeks from their last port and then a month until Scotland was what Jim had said to her.

That meant she had more than enough time to lay back in bed and wait for him to come back to their cabin. Melinda didn’t realize she had fallen back asleep until the bolt scraped firmly into the lock.

“Melinda? Are ye awake?”

Her eyes flew open – her head still warm and off-balance– and she clutched the bucket for dear life.

Jim flew across the cabin, setting down a bowl somewhere on the floor – bracing her back as her stomach heaved.

“Ye didn’t react this way to the sea on the earlier part of our journey.”

She spat into the bucket, wiped the back of her mouth, and glared up at him. “That’s because I wasn’t hungover, was I?”

He was so beautiful when he smiled.

“A rough morning then, was it?” He asked.

She pushed the bucket away, and he swiftly lifted it to the floor, settling on the bed beside her. His hands sought and found hers, big thumbs caressing her knuckles.

“I haven’t been this hungover since the day after we married.”

“And such a bonny day it was, too.” He kissed her cheek, then pulled back, twining his fingers through hers.

A long moment passed.

“Yer skin feels cooler than usual. Are ye sure you are feeling better?” He asked. “I can send for the ship’s doctor to take a look at you.”

“Yes, I do feel much better.” She replied softly. “We shall see how I am doing tonight before we rush to make any conclusions.”

He nodded and pursed his lips. “Of course.”

Her brow rose skeptically. “Is something on your mind?”

He sighed, “I – I could never stand it, knowing I caused ye pain. And especially no’ after everything we’ve endured, these past weeks.” One hand gently cradled her cheek, forcing her eyes to meet his. “God, Melinda – I was so afraid…”

She shifted closer, melting against him. “You could never hurt me, Jim. I was on the boat for weeks…all alone…terrified that I would never see you again. Or that Rick had lied, and I would have to bury you…”

“No,” he whispered urgently against her temple. “No– I would never do that to ye. Never.”

She clutched the front of his shirt with her good hand, anchoring herself to him. “Can you stay here, today? With me?”

He kissed her forehead. “Aye. I came upon your sister on my way here – she asked me to stop in and check on ye.”

They sat in silence for a bit longer before he sidled out from behind her and rummaged in their trunk of belongings. Pulling out a piece of cloth, he wet it in the bowl of water beside their bed and then returned to her side.

“Sit back. I want to try something on ye,” he instructed, and she did so, leaning against the wall of their cabin.

As he ran the cloth along her brow, she wrinkled her nose. Her eyes and nose stung from an intense scent. She didn’t have to ask.

“Tis only peppermint. It helps with nausea and headaches. Or it should,” he offered. “My ma used to do this for me when I was younger.”

“If you say so,” she responded, placing a kiss on his wrist.

The cloth slowly moved across her face and she looked at him. F or the first time since he’d entered their cabin, the nausea was clearing and Melinda saw her husband clearly. His dark hair was messy, curls displaced by the wind on the main deck and he seemed tired. The lines of his face were sharper than she’d ever seen them.

His traveling clothes were simple, a far cry from the lavish clothes of his usual day-to-day she had been accustomed to seeing him in before.  For a second, his glass face revealed a flash of sadness when she caught his eye. Just as quickly, the softness hardened.

“Say something the next time ye are feeling this ill, lass,” he instructed in a tone she imagined he would use to scold a child. “I can have Mrs. Fitz brew some tea for ye.”

“Jim, there is no need to make a fuss—“ She sighed.

“I want to take care of ye in yer time of need,” he whispered.

“Jim,” she spoke again, more forcefully. “I won’t deny this is helping, but I’ve caused you enough pain. There is no need for you to be cooped up down here with me longer than you need to while I wretch my insides out,” she said, bitterly cursing the thought of upheaving again.

His caresses stopped and he was sitting back on his haunches. “Caused me pain?” he asked, her voice was strained. “Ye need not make light of yer own struggles lately, lass.”

Melinda shifted. “I would rather not get into that again, Jim.” She said, unable to finish her thought and unable to say what was heavily on her mind as his eyes rose to meet her broken expression. Her eyes were pained and, with difficulty, she looked away.

“I understand what happened to ye, lass, ye ken?” He said softly. “I will be here for ye. I promise.”

“Jim...” She paused and took his hand. “I know… I know.” She ran her fingers along his palm, then gripped with an intensity he hadn’t expected. It grounded him, even as he dreaded the words that his mouth continued to form.

His heart dropped at her words, falling further and further through the floorboards—though he didn’t blame her. Images of his wife alone in that room again flooded his mind. Images of…some…vile man hurting her… Unable to bring himself to look at Melinda, he clutched at her hand tightly.

“I am in pain, Jim. I still think about it and what he did to me… he made me look at his face… it’s something I have tried to erase, but as much as I try, it’s getting harder,” her voice cracked. “I have tried to stay standing because all I want to do is crumple. So, yes, I thought I needed to be alone…” 

He only nodded, stroking her palm, her thumb, her wrist; listening, but still unable to raise his eyes to her. Then he looked up and met her eyes. Quickly – but no less gently – he gathered her body to his chest. Cradling her. Shielding her from the world.

“Do ye remember the first time I held ye like this?” His voice was low – deep. Thick with feeling.

She nodded, smiling. “Our wedding night,” she whispered again his neck.

He swallowed. “That’s the moment I fell in love wi’ ye, Mel. That – that feeling to love, to cherish. To want. To protect. It’s never changed. Never gone away. Not once.” He whispered and now she used her teeth on the long, stubbly column of his throat. “I canna live wi’out ye. I won’t – ” He said breathlessly.

“You won’t have to,” she breathed. “Not ever.” She tilted her chin and he kissed her, framing her sunburned face in his work-roughened hands.

Then he tugged the shift over her shoulders and stood so that she could watch him slowly get rid of his shirt, breeches, and boots.  Nestling skin on skin, Melinda laid against the bed on her left side and Jim faced her, his back to the door and his legs carefully wound through hers. They shared breath, heart, and space. Fortifying themselves in each other, and making time stop.

* * *

Gentle beams of light reached down through the water around Melinda, turned blue by the candescence of the surrounding ocean. The seabed was bright and colorful below her feet. The rainbow of fish had danced away when she’d initially swam closer in curiosity but were now moving lazily and aimlessly in and around the plants that made their homes, sunlight shimmering off their backs as they moved, like the way sunlight would dance off shards of glass when you caught the angle just right.

Waves, the sound muffled under the water, fell against the sandy beach a short distance behind her. The lull of their movements made silent the moment she had immersed herself entirely. Her eyes blinking open and fighting off the sting of the saltwater, feeling her body held weightless as rays of warmth touched the skin along her shoulders and back. Her gaze following the slow path of the unfamiliar creature swimming beside her.

A turtle. Melinda had not seen one before, it was Jim who had informed her of its name after she’d been watching from the deck of the ship, captivated like a child discovering a frog in a garden pond for the very first time.

The turtle's arms trailed seamlessly through the water, twisting and turning in a kind of slow dance as it made its way around where Melinda was floating, still and silent, trying to store every movement in her mind for later. She’d never drawn reptiles before. But this one almost looked like it was flying, so maybe she would make an exception.

Her heartbeat slowed as it came closer, mirroring the beat of the calm tumble of waves, wanting to reach out and touch it; to know what the feel of the shell would be like under her fingertips, but not wanting to startle it after all the time she’d spent trying to coax the unfamiliar creature into accepting her presence.

It stayed for a few beautiful moments, hovering in curious circles around her before it departed, heading into deeper water and leaving Melinda to return to the surface with a gasping breath.

The sun was even warmer against her skin without the layer of water above to refract it, but it wasn’t uncomfortable, just unfamiliar. She’d never been anywhere so warm as Spain. Never swam in oceans that didn’t leave her cold and shivering afterward. Not that it had ever stopped her.

It had only been a few days since they had left port in Valencia, but the hangover and seasickness Melinda had, had passed and she was now able to get out of bed and walk about the boat with Jim again. Even swim recklessly with him.

Melinda glanced around, noticing for the first time that her attempts to follow the turtle had led her halfway around the little island the ship had set anchor beside. Uninhabited; far out of reach of any eyes or vessels, the ocean stretching out for endless miles, any view of unfamiliar ships pleasantly lacking.

She headed back towards land, choosing to walk along the edge of the island rather than swim back to where the others were resting. Enjoying the shift of sand under her toes as the breeze began to dry her hair.

The clothes she was wearing belonged to Jim, lightweight enough so that she wouldn’t ‘drown herself’ as he had put it, yet scantily clad enough that the distance she’d put between herself and the others might not have been a complete accident.

Melinda was not the only one who had ventured into the water, it was almost difficult to feel shy when most of the crew were as bare-skinned as she was. Yet the stubborn warmth in her cheeks returned as she approached, sitting next to Jim on the edge of the lazing group.

She picked up the shift she had left there and let herself put it on and be concealed inside it as her sister sat in front of her, sifting through the sand for shells. Katherine placed the pretty ones on Ned’s bare chest when she found them and even-handed her a delicate, purple spiraled one in greeting. Melinda slipped it inside her pocket, smiling in thanks at the gesture before leaning back into her husband’s chest.

He had been awake most of the night but was choosing to sleep on the beach with her now rather than in their cabin, one arm slung over his eyes to keep out the light, and the other holding her close. Melinda watched as some of the crew played in that water, defying Daniel’s insistence that they wouldn’t be able to find any pearls amongst the oysters they were diving for. Most of the rest of the crew were lazing around in various groups, either in the water or on the beach.

Katherine found another coiled shell, lifting it closer for inspection before turning to a confused Melinda, a finger held against her lips as she placed the most recent addition to her collection on Ned’s chest. Her eyes followed as a few pointy legs poked out from under the shell, the creature holding itself upright as it suddenly began scuttling across his skin.

Ned bolted awake. The tickle of it pulling him out of a half state of consciousness as he swatted the poor creature away in reflex, the rest of the shells tumbling onto his lap.

“Fabulous. Now you're awake.” Her sister smiled cheekily at him as he made sense of what had just happened. He gave her a look that was half a smile and half an ‘I’ll get you back later.’

Melinda was still getting used to their relationship; it was so different from anything she’d grown used to. They were playful, honest and unapologetic to each other. A slight cultural shock when comparing the reserved and private dynamic that their parents had, and that she had been expected to have herself.

The freedom of being at sea seemed to seep into everything around them. Unrestrained by the niceties of social etiquette, both sisters were sitting closely near their partner. It was a type of everyday intimacy that was nice.

Melinda could feel the slight change in temperature as the sun continued moving past its peak in the sky, it wasn’t getting cold, but the sting of the sun was dimming. Perhaps she’d been swimming for a little too long, and she hadn’t been paying attention. She watched as most of the crew finally left the water, sitting together by a fire someone built.

The silence was broken a moment later by Katherine’s squeal of excitement. Melinda looked over to find her beaming down at what must have been a pearl, but it was hard to make out from the short distance, so it was probably only a tiny one.

Jim slowly moved behind her and jostled her awake, pushing himself onto his feet. “We should probably head back to the ship now before it gets too dark, and I think my ears are turning to coal from the sun.”

He held out a hand for her, pulling her to her feet before extending an arm to Katherine as well.

“That is a wonderful idea. I will need to check on Eddie soon. I doubt he will want to stay with the lady's maid for the whole day.” Katherine said as she helped Ned onto his feet.

They all clambered back into the two small boats that had brought them to shore, balancing precariously to fit everyone inside as they began to paddle towards the ship in the distance. 

The sail eclipsing the sun as they got closer. But all sense of intimidation that had stirred inside her at the same sight a few months prior had been replaced by a feeling of ease and security. This was home. Jim was home, and she felt like she never wanted to leave. 


	14. Chapter 14

Melinda’s pencils had become frustratingly small. Having whittled them down to the point where they either slipped out of her grasp or strained her hand whenever she attempted to add to her brimming collection of drawings.

Her sketchbook was impressive. Without anyone around to scold her of idle doodling like the pirate crew of the Kotu Kral, her gathering of hand-drawn birds and animals was growing like a nurtured sapling under the summer sun. While her drawings had started as a reminder of Jim, it had turned into something far bigger than she'd originally anticipated.

Not only had the turtle had turned out beautifully despite her more weighted practice towards feathered creatures, but a fter sitting down to capture it in very careful etchings she'd found herself with the drawing sprawled across three whole pages at various angles and poses. She'd since filled up another ten with other ocean animals, and her pencils were suffering for it.

Despite having turned the whole ship upside down in search and having her husband look in all of the ports they'd stopped in along the French coast, she had found no replacement. Jim had even offered a quill and ink from his desk, but it was not a medium she was familiar with and her endeavors to change that had lost her whole pages to inky, messy scribbles.

Melinda sighed, looking down at the half-drawn hummingbird on her lap. Its head and wings were fully fleshed out while its lower half had been abandoned as only faint trace lines, pushing the pencil back into its usual spot in the binding of the book to return to it later.

She glared at the hardened patches of skin contrasting against the soft palm of her hand - the mild callouses a recent acquisition from the sparing practice that Daniel had been putting her through since she had become well again.

She was pretty terrible at it.

It turned out that being taught to act like a noblewoman had in no way prepared her for skill in sword fighting, even if her mind had memorized every pattern and technique she'd observed and analyzed while watching others fight, but her muscles still protested moving the way she wanted them too.

Her arms were slow and her legs tripped over themselves. The practice was mortifying, but there was no unkindness in any of the crew’s tone when the others taunted her. But Daniel had advised that it would be better to avoid a repetition of what happened the night when Rick ambushed their ship, and Melinda had agreed. She needed to be able to defend herself.

Daniel had handed her a sword for the first time as the gathering audience around them made her groan, glancing down at the offered weapon before squinting her eyes at her sparing teacher.

"Are you kidding?" She asked.

"What?" He asked, the humor in his eyes giving away the jest behind his reply.

"It's wooden,” she replied, holding it up.

Daniel smiled, there was almost something smug about it, but it was mostly just playful. "Well, we wouldn't want ye hurting yerself now, milady, would we? My brother would never let me hear the end of it."

Any progress she'd made in the last few weeks was almost infinitesimal, but it was progress nonetheless.

Jim found her absentmindedly staring out at the water, glancing down at the half-finished hummingbird in the leatherbound book that was perched on her knees over the brown folds of her dress. He sat down beside her, enjoying the moment of fluster when she realized who was joining her, but it soon faded and a warm smile took its place.

"Why do ye like birds so much?" He asked sincerely, pointing towards her sketchbook.

Her forehead ruffled for a moment in a way he couldn't help, but noticed was adorable. "I don't know. I grew up near a fishing town, I guess they were the most interesting thing around."

"But there must have been something that made them interesting to ye?" He prompted gently.

She loved the sound of his voice, deep and melodic in a way that made her skin tingle, but also made her feel calm at the same time, there was something almost meditative about it. He watched her teeth bite onto the edge of her lower lip as she thought.

"Maybe it's because they are free, maybe I liked the idea of being able to get up and go wherever I wanted, like they could.” She explained and slowly turned her head to look at him. “But that's probably a bit heavy to be going through the mind of a young girl of twelve."

"Ye’ve been drawing since ye were twelve?" He asked.

"Yeah," she replied and nodded. "I was pretty awful back then though."

Jim smiled. “I doubt that much at all, lass.”

* * *

At first, when Melinda got sick again, she assumed it was due to the lurching of the ship. It didn’t exactly feel like seasickness though, and she had never had any trouble traveling by boat or been sick at sea before, but she wasn’t the only one on board who had issues with the choppy seas.

Her nausea, however, had persisted long after anyone else's. When they reached their last port before they would begin their final treck to Scotland, Jim had nicely enough gotten them a room at an inn, but she still had a few mornings where she’d had to run off to empty her stomach.  Her legs had been wobbly on land after too many weeks at sea, but she’d been relieved when she awoke one morning feeling ravenous, grateful that her body had seemed to finally adjust to its new circumstances.

So as soon as she was feeling like herself, they left port to make for Scotland and she hadn't felt a faint quivering in her gut until a storm after another couple of days at sea. That was when Melinda put it down to the rolling of the ship over the waves, but then it happened again the next day when there were practically no waves at all. And again while she was lying still in her cabin. And again after they’d made land on one of the many small islands in the English Channel.

But after being on solid ground for another three straight days, the strange feeling only increased in frequency, and Melinda could no longer pass it off as an effect of the sea. Though she was pretty sure she knew exactly what it was from the beginning, but didn’t wish it to be true.

It couldn't be true. Well, it could. She and Jim had been intimate many times since their reunion, but she had hoped it would still be for some time so she would know for sure that it could not be linked to her attack.

However, it could. She knew that, and she knew Jim could think of their child like that someday. Even if he was a good man and didn’t wish to. She knew he would.

* * *

That night at the dinner table in the common room of the inn, her cup was still almost full, her head spun, her body was tired, her heart ached and so she quietly excused herself. Much later, when it was apparent that the meal was nearly finished and he still hadn't come to her room, she sought him out. Her hand trembled on the door to his private room as she pushed it open and found him seated on the bed.

“Are you drunk?” she asked.

It seemed like everyone had been when she left the common room. She could not speak to him about this if he was.

“No,” he replied as he stood from the bed and staggered a bit. He righted himself and offered her a lopsided smile. “Only a little.”

_ Always honest _ , she thought and closed the door behind her.

“Are ye feeling any better today?” He asked.

“A little,” she explained, closing the distance between them. “I apologize for not staying through dinner with you.”

“Ye dinna have to apologize, lass. It was quite rowdy down there,” he said as his arm slid around her waist and pulled her against him. "I was gonna check on ye in a wee bit, lass."

"I grew impatient and thought I would come to see you first," she said, smiling at him.

It felt good.

It felt right to be so close to him and to have him want her there with him.

Jim's next move came in the form of a kiss, soft and gentle at first, but soon his tongue was begging for entrance to her mouth and she could not refuse him. He deepened the kiss and held her face in his hands, devouring her like a man starved in the wilderness. In unison, he began to paw at the ties of her robe and the neck of her nightgown as she started to work the leather of his belt until she suddenly pulled away.

As pleasing as it was, it was not why she had come to him.

“We need to talk, my love,” she said after taking a breath and her hands slid up to his chest as her eyes met his. In the dimly lit room, in the shifting shadows that the firelight threw across his face, his face was hard to read. “I came because there is something I wish to tell you. I...I am with child.” 

His arms tightened around her, but his brow furrowed in confusion. “With child?” he repeated as if his mouth did not know how to form the words. “Are ye sure? A bairn? Really?”

“I did not want to believe it at first. I could not bring myself to believe it was true, but I can’t brush this off anymore.” She whispered, shaking her head as a few tears rolled down her cheeks. "I do not know for sure, but I have had a feeling for some time."

“Our bairn…” His words were slow, but his expression was one filled with joy as tears rolled down his cheeks.

“Are you angry with me?” She asked. 

“Angry with ye? Why would ye ever think such a thing?” He asked and shook his head, bringing his hand up to cup her cheek. “I dinna ken I could be angry with ye ever, let alone now.” He kissed her forehead, lingering there for a moment before moving to her eyelids, her cheeks, and finally her lips. "Ye have made me the happiest man in the world."

Melinda’s hands returned to his belt, resuming the work she had started before, and unbuckled it. Jim made quick work of the fastening on her burgundy robe and pushed it off her shoulders so that she was standing before him in only the black silken nightdress she wore under it.  His mouth traveled along her jaw to her neck, taking every advantage to lavish her with attention.

Just as he reached the base of her neck, he pulled away far enough to gaze at her as he hooked a finger under the strap at her shoulder and moved it aside.  Her breath caught in the back of her throat when she saw the way he looked at her. Gone were any hints of trepidation that had been there since Rick captured her. It was replaced once more by the look of love and adoration she had come to know and cherish from him. When he reached for her other strap she stopped his hand, taking it into her own and bringing it up to her lips.

“Wait,” she whispered and began to unlace his leather gambeson.

She silently cursed it as she always did and felt almost triumphant when he finally shrugged out of it and pulled his linen shirt off after it.  She laid a hand over the scar that stretched across his heart before letting it drift lower to the ties on his trousers. Once she had them loosened, her fingers dipped below the band and wrapped around his hardening cock.

He kissed her again as she stroked him and slowly walked backward until her legs met the bed. Jim lifted her by the hips and set her down on the edge. He let his hands trail along her thighs and calves until he pulled each of her boots off and tossed them onto the floor.  Melinda wrapped her legs around Jim’s waist and brought him close to her again. Her arms twined around his neck as his fell instinctively around her. She felt tears begin to sting her eyes again and closed them tightly in a vain attempt to keep them from falling. 

“Melinda?” He asked, brushing her cheek with the pad of his thumb. “What is it?”

“I keep waiting for you to stop, to pull away and leave me,” she replied.

“Never, lass,” he shook his head. “From this day, until my last day.”

“Will you say that if the child isn’t yours?” She asked, opening her eyes to see his pained expression looking back at her. 

“As slim that chance may be, the bairn will still be ours.” He reassured her. "I will love him or her more than anything, but never as much as I love you."

She allowed herself to smile at that, allowed her heart to believe in his words because Jim had never lied to her, not once. Perhaps he ha been the only man in her life who never had. Her forehead rested against his own, but she deliberately kept her lips from finding his as she reached down and tugged his trousers down.  She used her feet to help push them down his legs.

When he stepped out of them, Melinda let the other strap of her dress fall off her shoulder and shimmied out of it, lying herself down on the bed. She held a hand out to him when he climbed onto the bed and stretched out next to her and he gladly took it, locking their fingers together as he began to pepper her with kisses yet again. 

“Tell me what ye want, my wife,” he whispered as he kissed the shell of her ear. 

“Make love to me,” she replied. “It’s been far too long.”   


* * *

They were curled up, in a boneless embrace, limbs slick with combined moisture, warm and aglow in satiated reverie, the last of the candles flickering down to their bare wicks. Melinda’s head was on Jim’s chest, resting on his heart, adrift and grounded by the steady drumbeat beneath her cheek.

His fingers absently caressed her arm where it laid and he felt a semblance of peace and quietude. It was such a foreign and welcome sensation. For a while, he believed she may have ceded into sleep, her breaths were so slow and even, her warm body cradled in his arms.

He was on the brink of slumber himself, and then she moved cautiously, lifting a hand to the bottom of his chin, curling her fingers into the tendrils of his beard, feels the roughness of his hair and exhaling. He smiled dreamily at the familiarity it brought and curved his chin to nuzzle against her head. 

“I think it may be a girl,” she murmured and waited with baited valor for several breaths while he slowly reached into a space of cognition to assimilate this soft terse pearl of truth.

She felt his arms tighten slightly around her deepening their hug, appreciating the security of his weight. His head shifted toward her again and she lifted her head shyly, meeting his eyes expectantly in the near darkness. She doesn’t realize that while she’d been waiting, her breaths have tightened in anticipation and subtle defensiveness.

He exhaled a smile. “A girl.” He breathed, trying out the word, forming the wondrous idea in his mind now swimming with abstract images, imagined and foreseen. A small dark-haired head, pattering feet, and a high pitched giggle. “Ye truly think so?”

He held her closer, quietly, bringing his forehead to meet hers and breathing contentedly before closing his eyes. She lifted her head back, seeing his closed eyes and lowered her head. She cowered slightly in his arm to bury her head in the crook of his armpit, inhaling his heady musk, swallowing against the insecurities rising. 

“It may only be a feeling, but is that alright?” She murmured, her voice shakier, pitched higher than she would have liked. “I know most men want many sons.” Her voice was so laced with uncertainty and fear, it startled him. 

He noticed the shift and leaned down, encouraging her eyes back up to meet his. Inquisitive concern etched in his brow. His silence consumed her. Inflaming the embers of her terror. She felt her belly twist and tighten. 

He moved to his side, propping himself up on his elbow so he can see her better. “Melinda,” he whispered tenderly, observing a rarely seen panic in her shimmering eyes. “All I ask for is for ye and the bairn to be safe.” His mouth curled into a small but genuine smile. His heart was already aglow with this new knowledge. “How long, do ye think?”

“Four months or so…” She whispered.

He lifted his hand to her hair, tangling his fingers in her loose curls. “Four months ago... we were just leaving England…” His voice was thick, full of wonder.

She couldn’t bear not seeing him – and slowly turned, raising her face to meet his eyes, so wide and so blue.

She wanted this baby to have his eyes.

“Yes. When we were first married,” she confirmed.

She watched the long, graceful column of his neck swallow, the dark stubble of his beard glinting in the firelight. “Oh, Mel,” he breathed, moving to slowly reach his hand to rest atop hers on her belly. “On the Sapphire, the first time... when ye finally began knew how much I love you and when we were so happy – ” 

“Are you not happy with me now?” she interrupted, surprised.

“I mean – of course, there is plenty to not be happy about, but – ”  He shook his head, clearly struggling to find the right words. “No, no – of course. It’s only – that was…before. The bairn is all we have left of…before. She is no’ tainted by – by that blasted pirate.”

His fingers twined with hers, sheltering the almost imperceptible swell, already so protective. He closed his eyes, sank his face into Claire’s belly, and groaned. 

“A Dhia,” he murmured, breath tickling her bare skin, so sensitive now. “What will I ever do wi’ a daughter?” 

She held him, cradling him and the baby that she was carrying inside of her. “Well – the same you’d do with a son, I suppose. Teach. Watch. Love.” 

He pulled back a bit, kissed her belly, and met her eyes – like his, swimming with tears of joy. “Aye. Love. So much love.”


	15. Chapter 15

It was another month before they finally arrived upon the Scottish coast. Jim couldn’t help but laugh as he saw Melinda practically jump off the ship the moment the boat docked at port. Making his way behind her with her sister and the baby in tow, he left Daniel to make any final arrangements for the ship and Ned came around soon after with the horses that they had brought with them.

“It’s a rather beautiful homeland. I am happy we finally made it,” she smiled at him, coming to his side as he saddled up the horse.

“Aye, it is bonny for sure, lass,” he said helping his wife up onto Biscuit, and then jumped up onto the stead beside hers. “It could look like a pig stye and I’d just be happy to get off that bloody ship and home with you.”

Jim rode ahead of her for most of the journey that day so she spent most of her time talking with Ned and Katherine. It was actually quite nice to be out, riding a horse in the Highlands. A welcome change from the stuffy dank walls of the boat.

After a few hours of traveling, they made camp for the night. Daniel and Jim each set up tents, bridled the horses and Mrs. Fitz and her daughter began to cook what looked like a skinned rabbit. Melinda went ahead to her and Jim’s tent and re-folded the blankets over the top of makeshift hay bed that was the only cushion they would have to lay on atop the cold ground. 

Now-familiar sounds of the men settling themselves in for the night filtered through the thin canvas of the tent, and she squinted in the dim light cast by the single candle as the tent flap opened for her husband. He offered her a smile as he came to sit beside her, bringing her dinner rations to her.

“I stole ye a wee bit of extra meat, though tis a bit burnt. Mrs. Fitz does not ken her way around squirrel as good as she does other meats.” He said, holding the silver dish to her.

“It will be tasty enough. I have no doubt,” she said, gladly taking the food.

She ate in silence and her thoughts slowly took over. He hadn’t touched her since she had told him she was with child — she knew it was because he was worried about her, but her body craved his touch. Her brain craved his words. Her heart mourned the pain he held so deeply within himself.

So tonight, after she finished eating and gone out to hare a drink with Jim and Daniel by the fire, she had retired to her tent a bit early. She’d gone out of her way to bring a small bowl of water with her and dipped the cleanest cloth she could find into the bowl, carefully wiping the grime and dried sweat from her face.

Then she’d undone her fichu to dab at her neck. And then she’d shrugged out of her stays, propped them up in the far corner, and sighed in relief as she washed between her breasts.

She hadn’t removed her dress in days - and with the cool night air seeping from under the tent flap, she’d have to wear it again tonight as well. But she wanted to do whatever she could to care for herself, relax a bit.

And make herself a bit nicer for Jim.

So after readjusting the bedroll yet again, neatly lining up her mud-spattered boots near the tent flap, and carefully bringing the single candle right to her elbow, she began unpinning her hair and waiting for her husband. She had just finished finger-combing her curls, facing the side of the tent, when she felt a rush of cool air. She turned, smiling as he crawled through the tent flap and sprawled, face-down, on the bedroll beside her.

Melinda lay a gentle hand on the back of his neck, pushing his curls away from his collar to help cool him down. “Long day?” She asked as she watched his back rise up and down in a sigh, and then he wrapped one long, possessive arm around her hips.

His voice rumbled against the bedroll, inaudible to her.

“You’ll have to try again,” she said softly, kneading the tense muscles at the base of his neck. “I can’t even tell what language you’re speaking.”

So he turned to face her, blue eyes almost dark in the candlelight. “No more worries than the usual, Melinda. I caught two of the men fighting. Under normal circumstances I’d figure out some sort of punishment, but now…”

“Shh. Just be still for awhile.” She whispered.

He edged over so that he lay with his head in her lap, the bairn - tumbling against his cheek, where her belly pressed into him. She traced the line of his nose, the strong, stubbled curve of his jaw, the hollows of his eyes.

The thumb of his right hand slowly traced the arch of her shin, pushing up the fabric of her dress as it explored.

“Right now I want to be in the moment with just you and me,” she said.

His eyes narrowed - pupils huge and dilated.

“Lay down,” he whispered, voice thick.

She slowly lay back to rest on her elbows, watching him rise to a sitting position and unbutton his waistcoat, eyes locked on hers the whole time.

“God, ye are so beautiful,” he breathed.

He neatly folded the waistcoat, lay it atop her boots, and crawled to lay atop her, rucking up her skirts and then the front of his kilt.

“Come to me, Jim. Just be with me, here. Now.”

He lowered his head and their mouths met in a long, slow kiss. She felt the heat of him - and his hands settled at her waist, anchoring her.

“Can we… the bairn?” He asked.

“It’s fine. You won’t hurt us.” She said as she decidedly moved on top of him, and he put up no such fight with her.

She tugged at her shift, making way as she slid home, a breathless gasp escaping them both. She leaned down and kissed him long and deep, tongues slowly jousting, teeth lightly nipping each other’s lips. His hips rose, seeking the friction he so desperately needed.

“Not yet, love,” she whispered against his mouth, pressing her hips down – stilling him - making him groan, but relax nonetheless.

She braced her hands on either side of him and arched her neck, inviting. He took her meaning and languidly ran his lips over the soft skin at the base of her throat, his warm breath making her shiver. He made his way up to just behind her ear, kissing lightly, then – smiling to himself - took her earlobe between his teeth.

Melinda moaned and rolled her hips once over him in answer. She felt the muscles in his thighs tighten with the effort not to move. She pulled back slightly, taking his chin between her fingers, tilted his head to the side and thoroughly returned the favor.

It was blissful torture.

She sat up and he tried to follow, but she gently pushed him back down. He watched her through hooded eyelids, his hands running up the length of her thighs, thumbs massaging the softness of her inner thighs. She was heavier now, but the weight was an incredibly astonishing comfort.

“I need ye, Mel,” he pleaded quietly.

“No,” she replied, teasing. “I want to watch you first.” She ran her fingertips, light as butterfly wings, over his collarbone, down to the hollow of his chest – the tickling chest hairs standing on end as his skin burst with gooseflesh in the wake of her touch.

His breathing became ragged, his body twitching like a stretched rubber band in an effort not to lose himself as her fingernails drew circles around his already stiff nipples. His hands moved as if of their own accord, and like a cloud her shift wafted over her head, the heady scent of her skin filling his senses.

His fingers began to explore her naked body in earnest, working their way over the beautiful curves the bairn had made of her belly in the last few weeks, his thumbs caressing the exquisitely sensitive peaks of her breasts. She reared, rising ever so slightly, but the movement was as intense as it was delicate. He grasped her hips and rose to meet her lips.

They began to rock, their bodies meeting in a rhythm that was both familiar and viscerally exciting. She wrapped her arms around his neck holding him to her chest, digging her nails into the nape of his neck. He could hear her heart thundering under his ear, echoing that of his own.

A fine film of sweat engulfed them both as their pace quickened, their cries breaking the night’s silence. She felt the beginnings of his release and felt her own build uncontrollably. She stilled him once more, pulling back; she cupped his face, stroking his damp black curls back from his forehead, to see the look of unutterable tenderness reflected in his eyes and knew it matched her own.

She kissed him lightly and rolled her hips, bringing him deeper, this time shattering them both completely. Later, as they lay in each other’s arms, his head resting in the curve of her shoulder and her fingernails running the length of his back, the other wrapped around his forearm that lay just across her hips.

Their breathing finally had become deep and steady once more. She thought him asleep when his voice suddenly drifted up towards her as if through a fog. “Does it ever stop, Melinda?” he asked; a slight catch in his voice. “The wanting you?” he eased his hand between her legs.

“God,” she replied, shifting her leg to accommodate his questing fingers. “I hope not.”

* * *

“He’s worn out,” Katherine said as she gently stroked her fingers over Eddie’s curls as the young boy slept on top of a small hay bale that Ned had covered with a blanket.

“As are you,” Ned came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pressing his lips delicately to the curve of her cheek. “You should lie down.”

“I suppose it will be rather nice for us to settle again, even if it’s only for a short time once we reach Leoch.” She said, slowly going to sit down on their makeshift bed.

“Yes. I should be able to find work with no problem,” he said and glanced over at her while placing a kiss to Eddie’s temple. “I can hardly believe how lucky we are to be here together.” He walked over to her then, sitting beside her on the bed.

“Yes. We are lucky,” she told him as she placed her own palms on his leg now glancing over at her sleeping son before searching out his eyes, capturing his gaze with her own. “I love you. Ned, I truly do.” 

“I love you, too.” Capturing her lips, he kissed her softly, mindful of the baby who started to whine the moment they did, hungry for the nourishment that only his mother could give.

“Oh, soon we will have our space.” She said giggling as she moved to pick up Eddie and soothe his cries as quickly as she could. “My darling, come here… mummy has you. There is no need to cry, sweet boy.”

Making her way back to sit beside Ned on the bed, she eased the ties of her dress loose and brought his mouth to her breast to feed. The soft lullabies that she loved as a girl soon wafted from Katherine’s lips as she rocked him back to sleep while he ate.

Her hand stroked the chubby back and head of her son as he fed from her breast. She concentrated on the song, trying to ignore how her beloved little boy would occasionally bite down on her nipple, but he was soon asleep after another few minutes of drinking from her.

“Will you lay him back down?” She asked, glancing over Ned as he slowly raised his gaze from where it had been caught on her bare skin and breasts. “Or just continue to gawk at me?”

“My apologies. I did not mean to offend you, Katherine,” he said, cheeks aflame as he took hold of her son.

“No, oh, I was only joking with you, Ned,” she teased, leaning in to capture his lips in a chaste and brief kiss. “Just hurry back to bed, love.”

“I will,” he said, smiling toward her as he went to place little Eddie back in his makeshift bed. He quickly hurried back into bed beside her and they huddled together under the furs. "Are you comfortable?" He was mere inches away before he spoke.

Both Katherine and Ned were breathing very shallowly now. Neither looked directly at one another as they laid in bed beside each other, but she could almost feel the sudden change in the air between the two of them. They seemed drawn closer together by some invisible, ever-tightening string-pulling for them to stop being apart. 

Giving in to the tension, she slowly turned around to face him and closed the gap. Warmth flooded her as she tasted him, and the rabbit they had shared for dinner. Layers of clothing pressed on each other as she brought her hands up to cup his face, holding him to her as their lips danced together. Quietly, she moaned into his mouth, moving her hands downwards to tug on his overclothes. 

“Mm,” he said, breaking this kiss, “I want to... but even if you aren't married anymore, it isn't right.”

Not listening, she reached up to kiss him again, pulling his face back down to her. For a moment, he responded in kind, his tongue instinctively coming to part her lips and ask for entrance before he stopped again. 

“Ned,” she whined, trying to continue to no avail before opening her eyes frustratedly to pout at him. 

He swallowed before answering. “Believe me, I want to,” he said, “And-and we will be together, one day, when we are married... hmm?"

“And how long will it be until that day... why does it matter anymore?” She accused, narrowing her eyes. "It's not like there is a maidenhead for you to take... or would you like to solemnly remind me of that night as though I wanted it?"

“No, Katherine... I never meant to-” he stuttered, sighing. “I apologize for my words, my love... I suppose waiting isn't necessary as you pointed out, but I want it to mean something, you know?" He kissed her chastely once more before she finally rose her eyes again to meet his. "I want our first to be special... in a real bed for starters?"

"I agree with you," she said, huffing a slightly dramatic sigh which he acknowledged rolling his eyes and kissing her neck. "But not if you are going to continue to tease me like that..."

"Only for a little bit longer," he chuckled.

* * *

Leoch.

Jim recognized the land when they were still miles away. He could have sworn he could tell when the air had changed to that of his home. He breathed easier, happy to be home. Now just an hour or so away from seeing his family home again.

He wondered just how different the manor would be since his mother had died and even then he hadn’t been home in nearly a year, but he didn’t really care. He just wanted to be home again, to show Melinda his home.

“Jim,” Melinda’s voice broke him away from his spiraling thoughts. He looked at her. Her eyes were locked on something in the distance in the direction of Leoch. “Who are those riders?”

Jim looked. He recognized one of the riders easily enough, “It’s the captain of my house guard, Harrison.” He was less certain about the identity of the other rider. “And his squire, I think.”

Daniel strode up, “Podrick. A young lad.” His brother said.

Jim looked at the man, who had a fond smile on his face. He wondered just how his brother knew the young boy.

The knight and squire rode up to the now stopped party. Part of Jim was annoyed to be stopped so close to home, wondering why anyone would send out riders in advance of their lord’s arrival.

But, being a Lord he made formal introductions anyway. Plus from the awe-struck look on the young man’s face, Jim remembered that most Scots believed Englishwomen to be ugly until they laid eyes on one. He hoped he’d hidden his own thoughts from her better during their first meeting than the squire, who was clearly smitten with his wife.

He could tell from Melinda’s face she was used to such looks. “What brings ye here, Harrison?” He asked.

The knight spoke said, “Yer advisor and Uncle Jonathan has requested for me to share with ye which families were at Leoch presently. Brief ye as much as I can, my lord. He thought it would be good to call a council meeting within the hour of yer arrival, and this should make such a thing possible.”

That’s smart, but then that was his uncle. Jonathan had always wanted to be Lord, but was the younger brother and fell in line after him, his future children and his brother. “Of course.” Jim signaled to the members of riding the party to begin moving again. “We can talk as we ride. I must speak with my wife and will ride up to speak with you after.” 

Harrison nodded. Podrick, instead of following his knight, moved to ride next to his brother, Daniel. He swung his horse around and came beside Melinda and her sister. “We are only an hour or so ride from Leoch. The captain of my guard wishes to brief me as much as he can on the issues at the manor before a meeting when we arrive. My uncle seems to have sent him. I ken tis shall not be long before I will come back to ride beside ye.” He explained.

“That sounds like there is a problem,” she said, glancing over at him with a worried look. “Is there something for us to worry about?”

“Not that I ken of, lass. When I ken ye will too. I swear,” he said with a smile to her.

She nodded slowly. “You swear?” She asked.

“Aye,” he said, winking and riding off to catch up with Harrison. “There better not be terrible news awaiting yer lord’s arrive, Harrison. Why has my uncle sent ye?”

The knight nodded, but recovered quickly, “We have representatives from all the Clancy bannermen. Yer Uncle has built barracks to station the men who came with them in the mostly abandoned Winter Town.”

Jim wasn’t too pleased with the man’s words but nodded. “Have we received word from the other clans?”

“Yes,” The knight replied and didn’t seem eager to say any more than that.

“And?” He prompted.

“I believe your uncle wanted to speak with ye alone on that, my lord.” The knight muttered.

Jim felt the pit of dread build in his stomach. It couldn’t be good if his uncle didn’t want him to hear it from a messenger. They discussed other details and logistics as they rode before he looked to Melinda, checking if she wanted to speak about the new information, but her eyes were trained on Daniel who was speaking with the squire, Podrick.

“So Podrick, have ye been keeping yerself busy in Leoch?” Daniel asked.

“Aye, my lord. I have been helping with training for any upcoming battles. Trying to bulk up, ye suggested.” Podrick replied. 

“And the whores of Edinburgh? Have they come a begging outside the gates of Leoch for a taste of your magic cock?” Daniel chuckled.

Jim’s eyes widened as he looked at his brother and Podrick. The squire looked a little embarrassed but mostly amused, this brother looked entirely amused. He glanced at his wife, expecting to see Melinda disapproving of Daniel’s coarse language, instead, she raised an eyebrow.

“Magic?” Melinda asked.

Daniel responded to her, “Ah, yes. I once gave this man a pouch of gold and three whores, and they refused payment because he was so good.”

“Three at once?” Her eyebrows were both raised now. Melinda’s eyes racked the younger man from top to bottom. “Impressive.”

Hating the look on her face, Jim snapped, “Podrick, shouldn’t ye be seeing to yer knight?”

Podrick stuttered out, “Yes, my lord.” He took off in the direction his commander had gone.

Melinda laughed loudly. A rare sound. One Jim had rarely heard before. He was still a bit upset and somewhat embarrassed by his reaction to the squire but hearing that sound made him think it had been worth it. He would suffer almost anything to hear that beautiful sound more.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: It’s time for Jim and Melinda to settle into Leoch and to try and wrap up the story the best from there ;) A bit of Katherine and Ned too and I hope you all enjoy xx Mariah**

* * *

**** “Ye dinna mind sleeping in this room, then? I can always find ye a better one that will fit yer needs.”

Katherine briefly looked up at her brother-in-law before returning to her work, carefully grinding comfrey and other herbs into a salve for his aching joints. It was somewhat of a weekly occurrence since he had run out of his usual mixture on the voyage to Leoch sometime ago.

But with the hubbub surrounding the lord’s return with his new wife last night – coupled with hurried (if heartfelt) introductions to the staff and frequent noble visitors named Ellen, Robert and Ian – she hadn’t had the chance to make more for him, and she, little Eddie and Ned had been shuffled into a clean but clearly unused bedroom on the manor’s third floor.

It wasn’t luxurious by any means, but it was comfortable and nicely decorated. The bed was large enough for her and Ned to lay together and for Eddie to join them; if need be. The babe usually slept on his own in his bassinet with a nursemaid by his side, but there was the occasional bad night when her son only wanted her and she was never one to deny her sweet little boy of sleeping on her or just near her.

“I am only glad to have a roof over my son’s head. After my late husband’s health declined I was unsure what my plan for the future was, but then I saw my sister on the docks with Ned… it changed everything,” she said softly, trailing off. “Your hospitality is greatly appreciated, Lord Clancy. I do not wish to think of where I could have been without my sister’s guidance and your everlasting kindness.”

Jim– observant but tactful – did not pry. He smiled, easing her worries a little. “Of course, Katherine. There is no need to thank me. Have ye come to stay, then?” He asked. “Ye wi’ always have a place here in Leoch. I have told Ned that several times since we met. There is plenty of work to be found for a man with his skills. I wi’ help ye both find yer places here.” He glanced across the room to where Ned was unpacking the last of their things. Ned was still unused to the noble life of having most things taken care of by servants and liked to put his own things away. “I must thank ye again for saving my wife. By doing that ye saved our wee bairn as well and for that… I owe you a debt that cannot be repaid.”

“I was only acting on Katherine’s orders. It was the right thing to do,” Ned said dutifully, standing up straight to hold out his hand for a firm handshake. “Anyone would have. It will be a blessing to see the child born into the world. I will pray that he or she will be healthy and strong.”

“Not just anyone would have fought off pirates,” Jim said. “I thank ye for yer prayers, Ned. Truly.”

“Only two and they weren’t the best ones on a good day,” Ned said with a humble shrug as he moved back over towards his trunk. “I can only hope for the future to bring us both good tidings.”

“Aye. I think it should,” Jim glanced back over at her as she pursed her lips, thinking hard.

She brought over a small portion of the salve for him to rub on his shoulder. After a long moment when she waited for him to remove his tunic and bare his strong muscled chest, she slowly raised her gaze to meet his kind eyes. “I believe it would be best if we stayed. If that is a welcomed idea?” She asked, slowly rubbing the soothing herbs over his lower back before noticing his bruised shoulder. “And if you don’t mind me asking… what did you do to your shoulder? It seems more bruised than tender.”

“Of course. It’s the least I could do for my good sister.” Jim said, moving his arm back and forth with more ease. “Ah, that? It was an accident. I was messing around with my brothers, dinna fash lass. Ye are a rare fine healer, Katherine. I have tried almost everything for years, and your concoction has worked the best out of all the ones I paid for.”

“Why thank you, my lord.” She said with a bright smile. “That is a welcomed compliment. I am happy to have eased your pain.”

Then Ned walked across the room again and drew her closer against him. “Ah, well – I can be one to attest that she mended me twice on the day she met me.” He said, placing his hand gently on her shoulder. “I was only a stablehand and she was the first and only noble girl who had ever looked me in the eye.”

“I wouldn’t say I was the only one… many girls would talk about you in private, but were too nervous to say or even look at you.” She said with a slight rose tint to her cheeks. “Though, Lord Clancy may not want to hear of such trivial things.”

“Yes, I suppose so,” Ned said with a frown.

“No, carry on. Do tell,” Jim said with a nod, leaning against the wall near him. “I love a good story.”

“There was one time when I was cleaning one of the horse’s hooves and ended up getting hurt…” Ned said, trailing off from there to look over at her lovingly. “Katherine had heard me shout and came into the stables… I had never seen a girl, let alone a lady as herself not flinch at the sight of blood, yet she picked up the pieces and stitched my hand back together.”

“A wonderful story,” Jim said, smiling. “It will be good to have you both around. A wedding will be in the near future, that I can see very clearly.”

“You truly think so? That would be wonderful,” she said, dreaming of her wedding day to Ned. The one she had hoped for before she was wed off to another. “A dream come true.”

“It will be good for the manor and for you both as well,” Jim said, hugging them both. “I do not see a reason to object to such a beautiful event. Would you like me to set it into motion?”

Just then Eddie stole the moment by crying out. A nursemaid made a quick move across the room, but Katherine waved her away. “I will take him. Go rest, Ester. Thank you for watching him last night.”

* * *

When they first arrived in Leoch, Jim had pointed out the small family graveyard just a little ways past the manor and beside the gardens. Melinda knew that he had gone there to speak to his family up returning, telling them things he couldn’t face telling the living or even her.

She knew Jim wouldn’t be going to visit them today because he had gone to discuss with Katherine and Ned about staying in Leoch more permanently. With her hand curved on her growing stomach, Melinda began the short walk to the graveyard.

Easily, she found who she was looking for. Faith Ellen Mackenzie Clancy.

She approached her grave and sat down on the lush green grass that would soon fade in the coming winter months. Finding a comfortable position for herself and the baby, she sighed, her hand running over the engraved stone.

“Hello, Faith. I am Melinda, Jim’s wife.” It felt a bit strange to be talking to a headstone but she had wished and needed to say something to Jim’s mother and this was the closest that she would ever get. “I came here to tell you, if your son hasn’t already, that we are with child,” her hand curved around her enlarged belly, “and I wish you and Aiden could be here. With us, with Jim. He misses you terribly sometimes and I know being back home only makes him realize how important you both were to him. He will make a good father. I know in my heart that he will. I suppose I just wanted to thank you, Faith, for raising such a wonderful, kind and strong son. For bringing him up in this world so I could find him.”

She brought my fingers to her mouth and kissed them, then slid them over the cold hard stone of Faith’s gravestone. “I wish to ask for your blessing for this baby,” she looked down at her stomach and felt a gentle kick from inside, “that even though you’re not here as my own parents aren’t,” a tear slid down her face, “that you will love this child and watch over him or her.”

Melinda stayed there for a while, partly because she was having some trouble standing up on her own these days. When she eventually did try and stand up, two large hands were at her back, helping her stand.

“Melinda,” Jim smiled, wrapping his arms around her belly, “What are ye doin’ here?”

She leaned her head back against his chest, feeling the strong thrum of his heart, “Just visiting with your mother, completely normal,” she laughed and reached up behind her to stroke his cheek.

“That’s verra kind of ye, Mel.” He kissed the spot where her neck met with her shoulder. “I came home about an hour ago… Daniel said ye had gone to the graveyard but he hadna seen ye since. So I came lookin’ for ye...”

She turned to face him, her hands on his firm chest. “And you found me,” she stood on her tiptoes and kissed his lips softly.

“Aye, I found ye.” He turned and led them back to the house.

* * *

Jim was the first to open his eyes the next morning, blinking blearily in the soft candlelight. He’d thrown his head back against the headboard, and he now eased up a bit, hands still gripping the lovely, perfect roundness of Melinda’s arse. His gaze focused on his wife – her mouth open as she breathed, eyes still shut tightly, blunt nails digging into the soft flesh of his shoulders.

Slowly, gently, he ran one hand up and over her hip, settling his thumb in the hollow of her navel, his fingers spread wide over the swell of her belly – caressing her and the bairn. Their wee miracle – a true blessing from God.

He felt a soft kick and then another, his eyes glancing up to see if she had woken as her limbs twitched and her breathing rapidly increased– only to meet her eyes, wide open now, pupils dilated, drawing him in with a siren’s song.

Melinda swallowed and licked her lips, sharing a wide, ecstatic smile with him. She grabbed his jaw with both hands, holding him in place as she leaned up for a long, slow, heady kiss. Later, when she had buried her face in the shelter of his neck and he had wrapped his arms so tightly around her that he felt the child moving against his own belly again, and he remembered what he had originally wanted to tell her before his bone-deep need and want for her had overpowered them both.

“I miss ye so much,” he said quietly, tracing his thumb up and down the bumps of her spine. “I wish to apologize for hardly having any chance to be with ye since our arrival. I want to show ye Leoch more once I have the chance.”

“Mmm. Yes. I know you will show me your home in time and I miss you as well, dear husband. Know that I will not grow angry at your for doing your duty as long as you come to dinner and bed at night,” she said with a smile on her face.

Gently he massaged the small of her back – which was troubling her more and more as the child grew – and she hummed with pleasure. “Ah, well. It’s no’ just doing my duty as the lord of Leoch but as yer husband. I have a duty to ye as well and I will never forget it, Melinda. So many times throughout the day I turned to speak to ye and forget ye’re no’ there with me like ye were on the boat. I am still not used to being parted from yet for most of the day… being our duties have us both busy.”

She straightened, raising her head to meet his eyes. The movement shifted him within her, and they both gasped. “I am not parted from you now,” she teased. “Do not forget that.”

He swallowed, slowly steading his breath. “I mean – there are so many things I wish to tell you. So many times I want to laugh wi’ ye at something, or someone. When I want to ask what ye think, or what ye’d do.”

She tucked behind his ear the hair that had become mussed with sleep. “I miss you, too,” she said quietly. “I wonder what you are doing – how bored you are – what you’re learning about each day as the laird or how many harlots have propositioned you.”

Her tone was light – but, perceptive as always, he immediately sensed her underlying worry – and insecurity. He traced her soft, swollen lower lip, thoughtful. “I meet so many people, go to so many places and do so many things, but my thoughts are always of ye, Melinda. I want to rush home, to be alone wi’ ye. To share everything with ye – and know that ye are here, waiting to share everything wi’ me.”

She kissed his thumb, heart full. “I am learning, too,” she said softly. “About Scotland, the court of Leoch, and running a household of my own. I so love being useful, but I miss you, desperately. I cannot wait for you to come home every day and for me to just be your wife.”

He rested his forehead against hers – and together they breathed, savoring each other. He slowly began to move into her and his gaze settled on the point of their connection – where the boundaries of their bodies melted – becoming one flesh, just as their hearts and minds were truly one.

“We are not whole without each other,” she whispered after a long moment, caressing the stiff joints and muscles of his back. “You are the only thing that makes sense to me. The only person I can trust.”

“Ye are my heart, my joy, my soul, mo nighean donn,” he breathed, bringing their joined hands to touch the precious, amazing point of their union.

Her stomach quivered and her breath quickened. She whimpered as tears shone in her eyes. “The love of my love, oh...” She gasped.

He tilted his hips, delighting in her shudder. He felt her hand move to the back of his neck, sliding up into his hair, tugging gently. His hips slapped against her, staggering in their rhythm as the primal need to finish finally took over. Something snapped in him and suddenly the white-hot flare of pleasure burned through him. Moaning and shuddering he emptied himself into her again and again before he stilled, buried as deep as he could possibly be.

* * *

They all slowly but surely found their routine at Leoch. Jim’s days were filled with attending to his lordly duties and the needs of his tenants. Melinda’s days were filled with her duties as the lady of the house while learning way around. Even though she was heavily pregnant, she had insisted that she could still do just as much as everyone else.

Katherine did her best to help out wherever help was needed. She had become the manor’s physician of sorts with a makeshift room for her to heal people in provided to her by Jim, along with some herbal supplies that she had asked for. Ned had taken up to be a handyman of sorts and did whatever he could to help out as well.

“I am going down to the stone mill Katherine, Mrs. Crook said it’s not working, care to join me?” He asked her over breaking their fast, more porridge with some fresh-picked berries. There was even a sweet-treat of a drink from France that gave her an extra sing of energy brought out as well.

“Sure,” she said with a slight nod and smirk. “I would love to get out of the manor for the day. I will just have to have someone alert Margaret, the nursemaid.” She said and quickly a servant ran off to alert the girl they would be leaving and she would need to watch over Eddie for a bit longer.

He led her out to the stone mill and she waited outside as he went to see what the problem was, “How’s it looking?” she asked Ned as he came back from inspecting it.

“It’d be a damn sight better if the wheel were turning. There must be somethin’ stuck,” he sighed, shaking his head. “I am gonna have to go back and see if I can pry it loose.”

“What? Ned, you’ll freeze to death!” She exclaimed, trying in any way to stop him but it was useless.

Ned was already stripping his boots and socks and when he loosened his belt, his trousers dropped. At least he wouldn’t be taking his tunic off as well or she didn’t know if she could keep her subtle glances at him as slim. “Most likely,” he shivered under the cold spring air. “But at least the manor will be able to serve decent bannocks at my wake.”

She was trying to look anywhere but him as she saw more paled skin revealed to her than tanned as he stripped down to only his tunic. The breeze caught under it, however and she was greeted with a nice view of his firm arse. Ned crawled down into the water and gasped at the temperature, glancing up at her.

“Don’t look at me. I warned you!” She said, shaking her head.

Just then, Melinda came marching up to where Katherine stood, “Mrs. Crook told me that you two came up here. What does he think he is doing?”

“Melinda, you shouldn’t be running around in your condition. It’s not healthy,” she reminded her.

“Do not presume to tell me what I can or cannot do, little sister. I am fine,” Melinda snorted and they both watched as Ned dove under the water.

He was down there an awfully long time and Katherine was starting to wonder if she should start stripping layers and dive in after him. She held her breath for another long twenty seconds and then came a loud sound as the wheel began to turn. And in the wheel was Ned’s shirt.

That was not a good sign.

“Blessed Michael defend us!” Ned shouted and rose out of the water a bit down from where he had entered.

“What in the hell were you even thinking?” Melinda shouted at him and he covered himself the best he could with both hands.

“Melinda, will you please turn around while I try to get out? Before I freeze anything off!” He shouted and her older sister could only laugh, handing her a blanket she had brought before turning to head back to the manor just down the road. “Katherine, will you please bring my things over?” His teeth were beginning to chatter together.

“Of course, Mister Banks.” She teased him and laughed at the sight of him, clutching himself in his hands.

She returned with his trousers and boots, there was no rescuing the shirt, now going round and round in the stone mill. Ned had gotten out of the water slowly, digging numb fingers into the loose earth of the embankment, trying to will his frozen muscles to cooperate. Once over the edge, he laid there like a grounded fish, shivering, gasping for breath, skin glistening with moisture and prickling with cold.

“Here. Put these on first,” she said as her shadow crossed his face, shielding him from the sun as she held out his trousers first.

Slowly, carefully he rose to his knees. Quickly he tugged them on once he took them from her, and she wound the blanket Melinda had given her around him, immobilizing him for now as she tried to warm him.

“Katherine, I– ”

“Do you always… have to be such a bloody hero? Your lips are turning blue and that scar on your side is still healing and God knows what’s in that water…” Her voice was muffled as she scrubbed his hair dry. Her whole body shivered as she reached out to touch him. He was ice cold. “Ned, you are freezing!” She slid her hand back and forth over his arm to bring about circulation. “Do you know how much you scared me? I thought I’d lost you.” She gripped his shoulders and shook him slightly, eyes burning into his. “You can’t do that. Not to Eddie, and most certainly not to me.”

“I was not trying to get myself killed. I swear it.” He strained against the fabric pinning his arms to his sides – wanting to hold her - but to no avail. “I would never do that to you or Eddie. I would never leave you alone.”

She sighed and lifted one hand from his shoulder to cup his cheek. “I know that,” she said softly, shaking her head.

He turned his face to kiss her palm, holding her eyes. A long moment passed between them that was filled with silence.

“I did not realize you could hold your breath for so long,” she said after a while, tucking dried strands of hair back behind his ears.

Ned shrugged. “Ah well. My brothers and I used to swim a lot when we were lads. I did not realize that it would be such a useful talent until I was grown.” He chuckled.

Katherine’s brows lifted skeptically. “Useful for fixing stone mills?”

He shrugged, his mouth widening in a wolfish grin. “Yes, but for other things too.” He teased her.

“Like what?” She asked, intrigued.

“A gentleman should not say such things to a lady,” he shook his head.

Her grin matched his own then. “Oh. I see.” She watched as he eased the blanket from his shoulders and smoothed the fabric on the grass beside them.

“Did you not tell me once that the best way to warm someone is through skin-on-skin contact?” He asked.

Katherine unwound the shawl from around her. “So I did. Want to make sure?”


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: I finished up this chapter really quickly once I got the story up :) Enjoy! xx Mariah**

* * *

Later that night after dinner, Melinda sat by the fire in her and Jim's chamber, her hands mindlessly drawing circles over her belly, thinking about the future. Jim walked in and took a seat next to me and smiled. He was holding a wooden box in his hands.

"I've been waitin' for a good time to surprise ye wi' this." He said cheerfully.

"What is it?" She asked and sat up in the chair. He handed her the box and she looked first at him smiling and then down to the box. She pulled the ribbon that was wrapped around it and opened it up.

"Apostles spoons," he said as she looked at the silver spoons with a small figure on the stem, "One… for each of the twelve apostles. A christening gift, for the bairn." Jim smiled, picking up one of the spoons and admiring it.

"Jim…" She sighed, her fingers grazing over each one, "where did you get them?"

"They've been passed down in my family for years." He said and set the spoon back in its original place.

Once again, her fears returned to the surface of her mind. "I know it sounds ridiculous but I can't help but wonder if I'll be any good at it. Being a mother…" She met his gaze and he took hold of her hand over her belly.

"Of course ye will," he whispered.

"What if I'm terrible at it though? She asked.

"Ye will no' be terrible. That I know." He bent down and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"How do you know?" She asked.

"The same way ye knew Katherine would be a good mother." He replied easily. "She's a natural, yer sister."

"Yes, she is." She said.

Jim smoothed his hand over her belly, grasping her fingers, "Seeing her with wee Eddie."

"There's nothing like if you had seen her before," she laughed, "What a racket she was, not an ounce of maternal feeling or instinct anywhere to be seen."

"Aye, I can see her being as wild as ye can be," he agreed. "You told me once that she worried about the same things you do now, worried that she'd no' be able to mother or care and so on. What did I tell ye then? I never doubted her now did I? I knew it was in her nature to be a kind and loving mother just as I see it in ye, mo nighean donn." He looked at her, his hand under her chin.

He felt her face crumble and a silent tear fell down her face. "I know how to deliver a baby, how to feed one, how to take care of one when it's ill but that's not being a mother. I only have a few vague memories of my own mother, nothing really to guide me." She whispered, shaking her head.

Jim pressed his lips to hers once again, "What ye don't ken, ye wi' learn. We shall learn together… and remember…" he said, looking down at the spoons still on her lap, "this is but the first of many."

She laughed, her fingers tangled in the locks of his hair at the nape of his neck, "Is that so?"

"One for each spoon," he whispered in her ear.

"You want twelve children?" She asked, her eyes widening and her stomach hurting at the mere thought of delivering twelve children.

"Why not?" He said, completely serious.

Melinda stroked his cheek, scratchy with days-old scruff, "Good God, I do love you."

"I love ye too," he kissed her and slid the box with the apostle's spoons onto the small table beside us and picked her up and carried me over to the bed. He was gentle, as he always was with the baby. His hands caressing her belly as he undressed her and made love to her again.

* * *

Melinda woke in the middle of the night, her hands drifting over the swell of her belly. She winced as she felt a sharp pain, and a small kick from the inside immediately after.

She held her swollen belly, which felt hard to the touch, trying to breathe slowly in...and back out. The wave of pain began ebbing away and she kept taking organized breaths until it abated. Outside, the wind was howling through the trees as if trying to whistle but only pushing the air harder and harder.

She looked around the dim room, wondering if it was nighttime or dawn. She noticed the fire had gotten very low and smoldered faintly. Her gaze came to rest on her husband asleep like a rock beside her and felt the pain starting again and her stomach tightened once more.

"Ah," she hissed again as the pain worsened, similar to what woke her up, but different to what she had been feeling over the past few days. Is this it? Is it happening? Is the baby coming early? "Jim," she whispered bracingly after it had eased off again. "Jim!" She poked at the sleeping man next to her, "Jim, wake up!"

"Hmm… what— whassrong?" Her husband slurred, blinking his eyes open. They stayed glazed with sleep and he yawned enormously as he tried to focus.

"I think it's the baby," she told him, groaning in pain as she tried to resituated herself in bed a bit more comfortably.

At this, Jim became fully alert, virtually springing out of the bed. "What? Our bairn? Is it coming now? Right now? Are ye okay? What do ye need?" He asked these questions at a speed that matched the wind howling outside and it took her a moment to process all he had said as she watched him frantically turning in each direction. He stopped, though, when she didn't answer immediately, his face panicked. "Is it bad?"

"I - I don't know," she said, her tone unsure, "I got woken up from this… pain. It just hurt...different than before." Her body answered her doubts, however, as another contraction started in her back and rippled through. She winced, clutching her stomach and Jim hurried forward to crouch next to her, his hand beginning to rub gentle circles on her back.

"Is there anything I can do? Should I call for the midwife, Ella? Or maybe yer sister…?" He asked, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"My sister," she whispered nodding slowly. "She will know if this is something to worry about. Remember… the midwife left to visit her family. The baby isn't supposed to come for some time still."

"Aye, I remember now. Katherine will know what to do." He agreed, pressing a kiss to her lips. "I don't want to leave ye here…"

She whimpered slightly as another pain rippled through her belly and around her back, and she leaned her forehead against his. "I will be fine, okay?" She whispered. "I promise."

He nodded. "Aye. Ye are a brawny and strong lass, aren't ye?" He chuckled, pressing a kiss to her lips briefly as he stood.

"I am," she said, smiling as an encouragement to him.

Her eyes shut as another sharp pain wracked through her body. She heard the door open as Jim walked down the hall to Katherine and Ned's room. In a matter of moments, he was back and her sister was at her side, her hand slipping into hers, squeezing back just as hard as she was.

"You will be alright, Melinda. Don't worry." Katherine smiled and she attempted not to whine out in pain, but it was hard not to and then a sweat began breaking out over her body as the contractions took over. "Brother, will you go and fetch a bowl of cold water and get all the cloths and wee things that Melinda and I have prepared," she told Jim and he took off without a word.

She knew her husband must be worried, and from the look on her sister's face, she was too. This was too soon. Melinda wasn't supposed to deliver for another five weeks, in her own time where she wouldn't be so worried, but now she was very afraid.

It was another three hours of her body contracting, where her insides felt like they were splitting open. Jim was fetching water periodically, unable to sit still for too long before he was up. At one point she remembered clutching on to his nightshirt, twisting the fabric in her hand and pulling his face down towards hers.

"You did this to me, James Clancy, you bastard!" She yelled.

He laughed as he pried her hand from his shirt and wiped her forehead lovingly with a cloth. "Melinda, yer doin' great, keep callin' me a bastard and ye will be fine."

Her sister stood at the end of the bed, her hands spreading her legs open to see if the baby was close. "I canna tell you exactly, Melinda. I've never seen it from this angle, only felt it from where you are sitting," she twisted her lips nervously.

"I have sent word to the midwife so I am hopin' she'll be here by tomorrow or the next day," Jim reassured her, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

Her sister nodded and pulled her shift back down. "It could be a while before you are ready to push, but I promise you, sweet sister, I will help you through this." Katherine collected the sodden cloths and took them to rinse downstairs.

Jim climbed on the bed and sat behind her, his thighs gripping and holding her up against him. "Sorcha… my love," he whispered, his hands rubbing lightly up and down her arms, "yer the bravest woman I know, so strong."

"I don't bloody feel strong right now," she groaned, leaning back into his chest as another contraction, this time sooner than the one before and she grimaced, her eyes shutting, "Goddamn this hurts!" She screamed and Jim's hand pressed against her belly.

He pressed his chin down on the top of my head and started to speak softly in Gaelic, "Gum bi thu, a naoinein bhig, fallain, ionraic, sona air feadh do bheatha gu léir."

"What does that mean, love?" she asked breathlessly, her hand reaching up to grip his neck.

"Och, 'tis a blessin' for the wee bairn, a prayer to be healthy, happy and honest all throughout his or her life." He kissed her cheek and pulled her closer between his body as if he was protecting her and the baby from harm.

They sat there for another two hours, her contractions growing closer with every passing minute. She hoped it would be soon because she felt drained already. Ned brought up food for her to try and eat, but nothing looked appetizing, Jim, on the other hand, ate for the both of them… well, the three of them.

She screamed and pushed back against Jim as another contraction came through, her legs kicking out in front of her on the bed.

"Katherine!" He called for her sister and she came running in, her hands full of clean linen. "I think she's gettin' closer," he sounded worried now, as he had been when the pain first started hours ago.

Her sister placed the linen on the bed and pulled up my shift, "Christ! I can almost see the baby's head, Melinda..." she held her gaze and put her hands on top of her knees, "You need to push when I say so."

Jim reached for her hands and she squeezed them as hard as she could, fresh sweat breaking out on her forehead as she held my legs open.

"Alright, now push, Melinda!" Katherine's hands were cold between her thighs and she pushed with all of her strength, a slew of curse words escaping her mouth.

"That was good, Mel, yer doin' just fine." He encouraged and only tightened his grip around her. "Ye can do this."

"Only a few more moments, Melinda. I need you to push," Katherine said softly, encouraging her as well.

She shut her eyes to the rest of the world and closed off the pain, focusing on the life that was coming out of her. Pushing, she felt her child come out before she heard any cries as the baby took its first breath.

Exhausted, she fell back against Jim and he wiped my forehead, pushing back locks of curls and she opened her eyes to see Katherine holding their baby, cleaning the placenta and blood off. Somehow, Melinda managed to reach her arms forward and Katherine delivered the baby safely into them.

"A beautiful and healthy baby girl," her sister said softly.

Melinda smiled, her finger touching gently against her daughter's rosy pink cheeks. She felt a wetness on the back of her neck that didn't feel like her own sweat, and she craned her neck to see her husband crying above her, his face beaming with love.

"She has yer brown hair, mo nighean donn. She's so bonny," he smiled and wrapped his arms around them, his hand coming to cup the smallness of her head. "I am so proud of ye," he kissed her temple and tears of her own slid down her cheeks, from exhaustion and pure joy. "For growing and birthing our sweet girl. Faith Elizabeth Clancy, welcome to the world," he cooed, his large finger joining hers against the babe's pale skin.

Her eyes opened and stared up at us, a shining ocean blue, just like her father's. "She's ours, Jim." She settled back into him, content to not move for quite some time, "Our creation."

"I know. Faith the best thing ye could ever give me, Melinda. She is already so precious to me, as are ye." He whispered against her ear. "I love ye both more than life."

"As I love you," she smiled back at him.

They laid together on the bed for hours, their eyes never leaving Faith's face as she began to smile, her eyes crinkling. She counted ten small toes and ten small fingers, which the babe she watched clasp onto her father's the minute he reached for her hand.

Seeing the look in his eyes and the way her heartfelt, Melinda would gladly give Jim as many children as he wanted, even if he wanted eleven more.

* * *

The first week after Faith's birth, she and Jim rarely left the comfort of their bed. She took turns being held by both of them and sleeping in their arms, she never wanted to let her go. Now she held her child in her arms, her pink cheeks glowing like the sunrise, and smoothed her finger over her tiny nose. Jim had fallen asleep next to her, his snoring a steady rhythm that was making her own eyes close.

It also warmed her heart that she now had a family to help raise her. She had only had Katherine as long as she could remember, even before her father passed because she was far too young when her mother and grandmother died. Jim's family became hers when she married him, his brother Daniel had warmed up to her now, especially during the pregnancy, helping her whenever her husband wasn't readily available. She had grown closer to her sister as well, not that they hadn't been close already.

Jim stirred in bed, his legs stretching, and his foot pressed against her chilled calf. He was always so warm, and he exuded body heat at all times, her little furnace. He groaned, as he sometimes did after a hard sleep, "Hello, Melinda," he smiled, and leaned over to place a kiss on Faith's head, "Hello my wee angel."

She shifted her into his arms, "I'm just going to go to the privy. I've been waiting for you to wake up," she kissed him and rose from the bed.

"Ye coulda woke me, lass." He whispered because he always talked to softly around Faith as if he didn't want to disturb her delicate ears.

"No one could wake you when you snore, Jim," she laughed and slid a wool robe around her shoulders and walked down the hall. Seeing the pictures of Jim when he was little hanging on the walls always made me tear up. They were here, in his childhood home, with their own baby and hopefully there would be many more little Clancy's running around in the future.

"Out of bed? Privy or lookin' for food?" Katherine asked her as she descended the stairs.

"Both actually, and perhaps a little walk around the garden will do my legs some good." She said, smiling at her. "Where is Ned?"

"He is asleep with Eddie upstairs. I woke a little while ago and couldn't fall back asleep, so I came to knit by the fire." Katherine explained and resumed her knitting by the hearth. "You and Jim both have barely left the bed, a little sunshine could do you both some good. I don't blame you though. I was the same with Eddie and the first few days are always special. A miracle to hold in your arms."

"Faith is indeed our little miracle," she paused at the end of the stairs.

"Melinda… I just wanted to say thank you — for welcoming us here." Katherine said and stood met her on the stairs. "I know that you are my sister and that we each carry a duty to family, but you and Jim have shown me, Eddie and Ned the upmost kindness by letting us make a life here."

"Don't worry, little Kat." She engulfed her in a hug and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Jim and I are happy to have you here with us and to have family so close now that we have a child to raise. It's nice having you live with me again, the both of you or should I say the three of you."

"Well, it is wonderful to be with you as well, dear sister," Katherine said, smiling at her. "Go do your business and I'll fetch you something to eat."

When her sister walked toward the kitchen, Melinda almost half ran to the privy outside. It was true what they say. After one gives birth, everything down there was just a bit looser.

* * *

Not only did she have the help of Katherine and Ned, but they also had Daniel.

He looked almost menacing, his wild eyes and his bushy beard, he was always there to offer a joke at the most inappropriate time. She sat on the front steps that led into the main house and watched as Daniel walked around the yard, holding Faith so gently in his big arms. The big bear had turned soft for his little niece.

"He's good wi' her, isn't he?" Jim said from above her and she turned her face to look at him.

"Yes, he's very gentle actually." She said, giggling. "Something I didn't quite take him as being." She had always thought of Daniel as a fighter, but he was actually a gentle giant.

"Aye, Daniel tends to only show his softer side once and a while," Jim said as he took the place beside her, grabbing her hand and intertwining it with his fingers. "I have been thinking about who should be Faith's godfather, and I ken that it should be both of our decision, but what do you think about my brother?"

She looked back over at Daniel, slowly bouncing Faith and whispering things in Gaelic to her, "I think it would be perfect, Jim. I know he would protect her as if she were his own."

"Wonderful! And for her godmother, 'tis can be yer choice if ye would like?" He asked, gazing at her lovingly.

"I was thinking my sister would be a good choice," she said, just in time to see Katherine scoop Faith into her arms.

Ned was beside her, holding a sleeping Eddie in his arms, who had gotten so much bigger in the short amount of time they had been in Leoch. The seven-month-old slept soundly on his father's chest as they walked up and past them to put both babes down for their naps.

"That is a perfect choice, love." He said, leaning in to kiss her sweetly on the lips.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Only a few chapters left :) With Faith born, Jim and Melinda forge their path together through the new journey of parenthood while Ned and Katherine's wedding is creeping closer. I hope you all enjoy this update! xx Mariah**

* * *

It's been five weeks since Faith was born, and it's been as happy and as tricky as any new parents would experience. Lots of sleepless nights, dirty nappies, and the often-painful adventure that was breast-feeding. But there had also been lots of laughter, beaming smiles, and heart-bursting love.

On a sunny afternoon, Melinda was watching her sister try on her wedding dress. Katherine and Ned's ceremony was coming up along with the harvest, and Melinda was doing everything she could to help her sister with the finishing touches.

With most of the planning done, all that was left was to finish the wedding dress and pick what meal would be served afterward during the ceremony while Faith and Eddie both napped not far away.

"I just have to finish taking it in at the waist, and it will be perfect," Andrea announced to Katherine as she put the final pin in what will be her wedding dress.

It was the dress Melinda had worn once before to a few tea get-togethers but knew it would work best for her sister. It was a beautiful dress, and it was even more flattering on Katherine's more slender figure.

"What do you think? Hair down or swept up?" Her younger sister asked.

"Your hair does look stunning when it's down, and the light can catch it," she added.

"Aye, I agree," Andrea added.

Katherine smiled. She had never really one of those girls who fantasied about getting married with the big white wedding dress and long train, but Katherine couldn't deny that she had gotten a bit swept away in these plans.

Maybe it was because it's Ned, maybe it was because so many things that were weighing her down in the past are now gone. Perhaps it's a combination of both. But she was looking forward to the ceremony and celebration, which were only a few days away.

In the last five weeks, it felt like a completely different life for both Katherine and Melinda. After having grown up with money and a powerful father, it wasn't the lavish lifestyle that was new to them, but having a loving and welcoming family around was something brand new.

Thomas Gordon had never been a kind or welcoming father, and their mother had died when both girls were young on the birthing bed, but Daniel Clancy was happy to have more people to get close to along with the children as well.

They were even expecting Jim's Aunt Marie and close childhood friend Lord Timothy to arrive at the manor tomorrow in time for the wedding. They had also sent a letter to their father, hoping Thomas would come in time but had not received any word. It will be a small affair, but that was just fine.

"Ok, now, get out of this so I can get to work," Andrea said and helped her sister step out of the dress.

While Katherine redressed into her usual housedress, Melinda can't help but feel grateful that she could experience all of this with her sister this time around. When she had gone to marry Jim, they had been separated and even before when her sister was initially married to Lord Castello in Spain. But since her surprising abduction and then a quick reunion with her sister after Ned saved her, she was brimming with joy that they were now together.

"Melinda?" Katherine asked, "Everything alright?" She blinked and her sister spied tears in her eyes, "Oh, you're crying!"

"It's tears of joy, little sister, don't worry." The two women embraced. "When you first were sent to Spain, I tried not to think about all the things I would miss out on with you as time went on because it just hurt too much. Even when I married Jim, it hurt, but now you are here, and I get to experience this and watch my nephew grow up. I get to see you marry the man you have loved since childhood, and I feel blessed." Melinda wrapped her arms more tightly around Katherine as she confessed all of this.

"How are you doing with all of this?" Her sister asked as they separated and went to sit at a table off to the right. There was still a bit of planning to do and had some food ready to eat while they did so. "Nothing can prepare you for everything that comes after birth."

Melinda shrugged, pouring herself a bit of tea. "I'm exhausted, and breastfeeding is more difficult than I imagined, but I am doing fine. Jim has been a great helping hand." It was so uncommon to see a man be as hands-on as her husband was. He was changing nappies, helping her with the problematic aspects of breastfeeding, and always encouraging her to rest. "It has been a wonderful road."

"It has been wonderful to see how much he helps you. I know I would not have had that from my prior husband." Katherine added as she sipped on her tea. "Has Jim been sleeping at all? He's always telling you to rest, but does he?"

"Yes. He is resting now," she agreed, chuckling. "He should get more sleep. I always tell him, but he's more worried about me."

Katherine agreed, "As he should be. How are you feeling physically? I know I asked you once before, but I only worry."

The first few weeks after giving birth Melinda was barely up for walking from her and Jim's master bedroom to the dining table set up in there for meals. But now she had starting to find her strength again. It only remained to the top floor of the house for now, but that wasn't much of a problem. If she wanted to go outside, all she had to do was step out onto the private balcony connected to the master suite.

"I think so," she said with a little uncertainly.

"You will heal soon enough to lie with Jim again if that's what you worry about," Katherine answered the unspoken question her sister knew she had, even though she was the younger one. "Maybe another week or two. You could have Jim find a doctor to examine you if you truly are worried."

"I know that," she sighed, rolling her eyes. "I am not worried. I am just eager to be with my husband as much as he is to be with me."

Melinda had thought of the way she and her husband had kissed before bed and how it had made them both feel. Even though they shared chaste kisses every day, it was always lovely to spend time alone together when their daughter slept tangled beneath the sheets with their lips sealed together.

Just then, Faith decided she was done napping and announced it with a loud wail. She answered the call, picking up her squirming baby and soothing her by cradling her close. "Have you made any decisions on the meal we will serve after your ceremony?"

"I was thinking a lamb stew first and then a roasted duck with stewed potatoes and warm cheese bread," Katherine suggested. "Lastly, a nice cake for dessert."

"That sounds lovely," she said, carrying Faith in her arms back to her chair. "Jim said he has some French wine just for the occasion along with his father's whiskey."

Katherine nodded, making a note in her planner as they enjoyed the afternoon together.

* * *

Leoch's chapel was nothing like what Ned was used to in England. He supposed it made sense with the traditional customs in Scotland, and it was a bit small but had a comfortable and inviting feel to it. The statues around the room and stained glass were elegant and not flashy like in other chapels he had been to.

It was at least warm and the sun had just passed its halfway mark in the sky when he had arrived. Standing at the altar, he was the only member of the wedding to be present besides the Priest. Several servants were busy lighting candles around the room or tending to the fires in the braziers around the room.

Just as he was beginning to think that he had timed his arrival to early when the doors to chapel opened and almost everyone entered. Melinda entered carrying Faith, alongside her handmaiden Andrea who was holding little Eddie. Afterward, Jim's brother Daniel followed with their Aunt Marie along with Lord Timothy and his wife. When the doors opened again, Ned felt his breath catch.

On Jim's arm, Katherine, who was nearly as tall as her brother-in-law, looked stunning. Her white dress fit beautifully and it was accented with white lace. She was also smiling as she approached; he only could hope the smile he gave her looked happy and not as nervous as he felt.

When Jim came to a stop near the altar, he whispered something into her ear before glancing at him with a smile as Ned took her arm. His hands didn't shake when he brought her palm to his lips before helping her up onto the altar. It was as though her ease seemed to help steady his nerves.

Katherine said her vows with calmness and warmth that Ned wanted to do nothing but bask in. Perhaps this would be easier than he thought.

That feeling did not last when it came time for the kiss. He swallowed his nerves and leaned in close before he stopped. He hadn't asked for permission was something ingrained in the back of his mind, having been too low for her to kiss him before publically, but it still caused him to hesitate.

Katherine laughed softly and closed the distance between them and pressed her lips to his. The kiss was brief and instead chase, but he enjoyed it and from the pleased look on his bride's face.

"You don't have to worry about that any longer," she whispered to him. "I am yours now, and you are mine."

He grinned happily at her while offering his arm, and the newlywed pair walked out of the chapel and to the dining hall where the wedding meal would be held. The room was filled with food and drink. Some of the local minor nobility had been invited and were in attendance; even some of the servants were having a gathering of their own in the corner of the hall.

Ned and Katherine had seats reserved for them in the middle of the large family table at the front of the hall. Jim and Melinda sat nearby as well as Daniel and Aunt Marie. Sadly, Andrea had retreated sometime during the ceremony with both children to care for them.

The great hall filled up quickly with guests, eager to celebrate and food began to be passed around. Ned knew that being the bride and groom at the feast they would be the center of attention, and as much as he had gotten used to some of the pamperings that came with being a guest of Jim's estate, it was a bit unnerving to be receiving glances from every corner of the room. He couldn't wait for the attention to die down and for everything to get back to normal.

"Would you like some lamb stew, my love," Ned turned towards his new wife who had offered him a spoonful of stew.

"Yes, thank you." He said as he took it from her.

He watched as Katherine picked up what appeared to be a small cake of some sort and take a bite out of it. "Heading straight for the deserts are we?"

"Oh. Yes, just a little." She said. "Lemon cakes are my favorite."

He didn't get the chance to continue much of a conversation with his new wife as a near steady stream of well-wishers approached the table to congratulate the happy couple as the day wore on and became evening.

Throughout their celebration, Katherine often would leave to check on Eddie and make sure he was well-fed through the night, and as a man who was much more solitary in life, all of the attention and talking soon began to tire him out. He had long since given up on eating and instead only wished to leave the great hall.

"Ned?" It was Katherine who brought him out of his thoughts.

"Yes," he answered, looking over at him.

"Would it bother you if had a plate or two sent to our chambers? That is where we will be staying yes?" She had a small plate of food in her hand.

Where they would be staying. His palms began to sweat and his mind raced. Him, staying in a room with Katherine. A room with a bed, him in bed with her. His stomach did a little flip. It was a dream of an idea, even though they had been sharing a bed for weeks, months even, now they were man and wife. "Yes, of course, to both. I mean, yes you can have a plate sent to our room." The words tumbled out of his mouth.

Katherine nodded and handed the plate to a serving girl and whispered something in her ear. As she turned back to him, she was cut off by a sudden outburst from Melinda who was sitting nearby. The young woman had stood from her place and was pointing Daniel next to her.

"Enough of that. If I hear one more word from your horrid mouth about my little sister I will cut out your tongue." Melinda grasped the handle of what looked like to Willas a rapier. He hadn't noticed that before.

A boisterous laugh sounded from a drunken Daniel "Ha-ha. All I said was we should bed them as man and wife!"

Ned's pulse raced and he reached out for Katherine. He knew of the bedding tradition in Scotland and the thought of other men dragging his wife through the halls of the castle disrobing her disgusted him. Unlike Melinda, he did not have a weapon on him. He reached for a table knife instead, just in case. It was nothing like what he had trained with the past several years, but it would have to do.

"Sit down, my sweet and courageous wife." The calm but authoritative voice of Jim Clancy echoed through the great hall as he kissed Melinda's cheek. "Daniel was only joking. No bedding tradition will happen for your sister just as there was none for us."

All talking and the music came to an end and taking the opportunity, Katherine stood from the table as regally as possible and held out her arm for Ned. The only sound in the room came from the logs crackling in the hearths. Threading his arm through his new wife's, Ned and Katherine walked out of the great hall as quickly as possible.

His mind was racing, trying to work over the myriad of thoughts, sensations, and emotions that flooded his mind. Underneath her wedding dress, he could feel the warmth radiating from her skin. It was all very pleasant. They arrived at their room soon enough and he opened the door for Katherine. She followed him inside and watched as he sat down near the fireplace on the opposite side of the room.

Ned had stood for too long during the ceremony and danced even more during their celebrations. It had been an exhausting day.

"Did you have a good time tonight?" She asked as she sat down the chair near him. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Yes, I mean no…. ah." He blushed and flustered under her gaze. "I had a wonderful time tonight." He paused before continuing. "And there is something you can do. If… if you do not mind that is my lady."

"Of course I do not mind." She said as she rose again. "Would you please call me Katherine now. I am your wife, Ned."

The familiarity and intimacy of her names was still something odd to him. Something he had been too low to use in public and even still too frightened to use in private sometimes.

"You may still have to remind me from time to time, Katherine," he said, teasingly. "The thing you could do for me is to grab a wooden box on the table over there, the small rectangular one."

"I see it," Katherine called from the other side of the room once she had gotten up.

Ned smiled to himself, she had a lovely voice. He wondered if she could sing as well. He imagined she would have a beautiful singing voice. She quickly returned carrying with her the box. Setting them it on the small table near the fire she sat down again.

Taking the box, he handed it to Katherine. "This is for you. A wedding present." He said sheepishly. "I didn't have time to have something made for you especially. I hope you like it."

Katherine's breath caught in her lungs when she opened the box. Taking out the necklace carefully she held it up to inspect it. The pearls glistened in the light from the fireplace as though they were still wet from the ocean.

"Ned… it's beautiful." She said, beaming at him. "Thank you."

"They were my mother's. It's the only thing I have left of her," he said solemnly, glancing over into the fireplace and at the flames. "She would have wanted me to give them to my bride."

An awkward silence followed and he noticed with relief that Katherine was busying herself by putting away the necklace and reaching for the plate of lemon cakes and even some of the food that had been sent in earlier.

"Do you want children, Ned?" She knew that all men wanted a son, to see themselves in them and knew he could have that with Eddie, but she hoped he wanted children of their own. "Our own children, that is."

The question took Ned aback; she could tell that he had not seen it coming. He tugged at his collar. "Yes, yes I would like to have children. Just… Just not so soon."

"What do you mean not so soon?" Katherine then put a hand to her mouth. The question had come out so fast she did not have time to think about what she was saying. "I'm sorry, that was rude of me. Please, you do not have to answer that."

"No, no it's alright. You can always speak freely with me, Katherine," he said as he shifted in his seat to try and get more comfortable. "It's just with Eddie I feel content. He is just as much my son as he is yours, and soon enough we will have our own children. I want to get to know you more as well because as much as I think I know you things have changed between us. I just... I wish to never be like your husband before... I could never presume anything from you-"

She soon placed a finger on his lips for a second to halt any apologies. Unsure of what to say, he remained silent. Katherine wanted to explain more in-depth like Ned had opened himself to her, even though it was not a pleasant part of her life.

"I understand. Thank you for explaining your thoughts. You are right. Things are different." She rested her hand on his. "I was married once before and I carried his child... but from the time I spent with Lord Castello one thing I can tell you is that you are nothing like him." She added softly, wiping away unshed tears. "You could never be like him."

He wanted nothing more than to erase that awful man from her memory and sealed their lips together. The memory of their last kiss sustained her desire until now, but she was drowning in the rapture of him as his hands slid around her. He slowly began to undo the ties, but it wasn't long before he struggled to do some this angle and they both shared a laugh as their lips parted but they remained close.

"It would probably be easier for you if you were looking at the back of my dress," she told him, still slightly snickering as they shared another chaste kiss.

"You are right," he whispered against her lips before moving behind her.

He slowly undid the buttons and ties of her dress, pressing kisses to the skin that was revealed. She basked in the feeling, the warmth that spread through as his lips trailed lower and finally he undid the last tie and the only thing keeping it from falling to the floor was the sleeves she still wore.

Ned stood and ran his hands up her back as he did so. "Do you want me to keep going?" He asked.

She did and hoped he could tell that she did as he moved to stand in front of her again. Her half-lidded eyes drank the sight of her husband as his heavy breathing made his hard chest rise and fall rapidly, and he had that look on his face once again. It's dark and hungry like he'd been made from every sinful thing known to man. She felt as though she would be damned to hell for even tasting something so good.

"I— I am still unskilled in this area... even for having been married before," she started, trying to find the words. She was rarely lost for words since she usually had so much to say. "But you've made so many promises to me already... I want to know if you are good to your word."

That was it. All the words he had needed to hear to push the sleeves off of her arms.

She stood there watching as he drank in the sight of her naked for the first time. It was maddening, waiting there, watching him, but soon his lips were on her neck nipping the spot behind her ear, and she was pulling him closer to her. As he slowly cupped her breast lightly in his palm, Ned felt a sudden rush course through his body. She did not shrink away from his touch. He felt bold to touch her like this, even now, but she did not seem to dislike it.

Ned took a half step forward, encouraged by her apparent acceptance of his touch, easing closer to her. His pulse jumped as he felt Katherine reach up and stroke his chest tentatively at the opening of his shirt. His heart leaped at the contact. He wanted her badly, but he must not rush things. His right hand stroked and fondled her breast as he held it lightly.

It felt just as warm and soft as he imagined it would. The number of times he had dreamed of this moment was an unthinkable number. He would not deny it to himself that he had wanted her from almost the beginning but now was to not the time to declare that to her.

That's when he felt Katherine's gentle caress on the upper part of his still covered chest. She seemed curious, he thought, cautiously getting to know him as though he were someone new and he supposed he still was even after all this time. Suddenly, she spoke, breaking Jamie's intense concentration.

"My turn," Katherine whispered breathlessly.

Not looking up, his wife quickly began to work the belt that held his trousers tightly to his hips. If she expected them to fall when it was removed, she would be disappointed, he thought ruefully. However, the feeling of her hands just an inch or two above his cock, made him hold his breath.

She flung the belt away carelessly, and he could no longer withhold himself. He kissed her fiercely, devouring her mouth with his own, his tongue probing the sweet depths of her mouth as their breaths mingled. She tasted sweet and he was happy to feel and hear her surprise, but she was not revolted by his adoration. She leaned into his touch, enjoying the feeling of him brushing his fingers over her puckered nipples.

This was a dream. It had to be. His body was so close to her, and she could feel every part of him, especially the way his cock strained against his trousers. They stopped moving when her legs hit the back of the bed and his heart hammered in his chest as he laid her onto her back.

She crawled up the bed on her back until her head was cushioned by the feather pillows and watched as he looked over her again, drinking in the sight as though he was a blind man seeing the sun for the first time. Ned pulled at his the laces of his trousers and shoved them down his hips. Every part of him was lightly muscled and her eyes land on his erection, larger than she was used to, causing her cheeks to tint with a rosy blush.

"May I touch you?" she asked curiously, and suddenly Ned smiled at her knowingly.

"If you wish to," he responded, climbing onto the bed beside her. She bit her lip and reached forward, her fingers were unsure as she swept them over his cock, but he still grunted and stilled her hand, "Games for another day, my love. I've waited so long to have you and now you're mine."

Ned laid on his side and stroked his hand down her body. Her breath caught in her throat as his hands trailed beyond her belly, feeling insecure at the extra weight there, but he kissed it, all the same, never once saying anything to her about it and going lower to delve between her thighs. And God, she'd never pictured anything could feel this good. It was like she could finally, after all the weeks of numbness and worries running through her bones, she was able to relax.

She doesn't give him long before she's pulling him back to her mouth, deprived of his kisses for what feels like an eternity. "Ned," she gasped out against his mouth when his fingers began to move against her. "Oh, Ned."

His fingers followed the same pattern as his tongue, only they slid into the tight warmth, while his thumb continued to rub in circles. She gasped as she felt jolts of pleasure running down her back and the teasing of her body continued, eliciting quiet moans of pleasure and heavy breathing. She met the same edge as her dreams, but unlike those, she only seemed to climb higher as his free hand played with her breasts, fondly.

"Oh, God—" she exclaimed as he chased her release while his fingers and tongue worked together to bring her there.

Her body writhed against the bed, thighs quivering, as she looked up at him lustfully. She watched as he stroked himself and she was almost transfixed. It's sinful and erotic to watch him, but she couldn't tear her gaze away. His glazed eyes met hers as he moved closer, kissing her as he pushed inside her gently, and the intimacy of the moment was enough to distract her. Her mouth fell open slightly and her hands gripped his shoulder, bringing him even closer.

Katherine was still coming down from her high and remained a puddle beneath him, yet she felt a new wave of desire blossoming in the pit of her stomach. She relished in it as he sunk deeper, her legs falling wider apart to let him move closer to her. It's slow and lucid then, how they moved together. How their tongues tangled and played while their hands roamed over each other's bodies, pulling the other closer as if they'd never let go.

No one had ever really explained what it was or how it should feel. His body seemed unable to function properly for a moment, his breath caught, a moan escaping his lips. As he moved, he realized being inside a woman was much different than the limited self-abuse he occasionally engaged in. The church told him it was a sin, but was it not a greater sin to engage in carnal relations before marriage, Ned often thought. This was different, he could feel his wife's body responding to his movements.

God, his wife... his sweet, loving Katherine beneath him. He could feel the quivering and heat of her all around his cock, gripping him, holding him, and almost drawing him deeper inside as he moved. When he touched himself before, his release took great concentration and a bit of time. They shared the same breath, the same rapid heartbeat, and soul. It was just them, alone in a world of their own making. A hazy bubble where nothing else exists but this moment as his lips touched her lips and his hands were on her skin, as his body and hers became one over and over again.

The warm air smelled like him as he thrust inside of her, his mouth ghosting kisses on her neck and sucking the spot behind her ear. She was lost in it. She can't help the wide smile that broke out in her face, her eyes half-closed; this feeling it was pure bliss. She tangled her hands in his hair as his mouth covered hers again, his lips matching his unhurried pace as the pleasure in each other. They both knew then that they would never tire of this.

"Oh god, Katherine," he groaned as he continued to claim her body, rocking above her as they were joined together. "I love you."

Sweat beads down her back, her body flushing as he rocked his hips harder, hand tightening on her thigh. Their kisses were full of hunger, as they were claimed by pleasure. He'd started so gentle, so agonizingly slow, but now he was relentless; sinking into her again and again harder and faster. At that moment, she needed him so much closer, and she grabbed at his arm and then his neck to bring him closer to her, her mouth desperately sucking against his skin.

"Ned," she whined, realizing that her body was once again desperate to find release. "I need more... "

He ran his hand down her body and found that spot, right above where they're joined, and rubbing it mercilessly, her eyes closed as her soft moans started to fill the air and he kissed her to slightly quiet them. Her climax took over her body, rocking her in waves of pure bliss. He was not far behind, crying out her name against her neck when he felt the tightening of his loins and the sudden rush of his body's release.

He rolled over, to fall at her side so he wouldn't crush her, but as worn out as he was, he remained aware of feeling his wife's soft, warm breasts pressing against his bare skin when he settled against him. But soon he realized in the aftermath that they had done what needed to be done, and he speculated what happens next.

Could they do it again? Would they? How soon? Did Katherine even want to?

Ned had thought she might have enjoyed it, and she definitely seemed like she had, but as the night wore on he still wondered. Was it even right of him to want her again? Turning his head to his left, he soon met her gaze.

"Did I… uh-um... I didn't hurt you, did I?" he asked nervously, one hand cupping her face, his thumb on her chin.

"No. You didn't hurt me," she whispered and he felt her hand drift over his cheek, neck, and down his shoulder in reassurance.

"You sure?" He whispered, his heart still racing and a bit unconvinced, cupping her cheek tenderly.

"Oh, yes," she spoke gently and wondrously to him, a satisfied smile drifting across her face and a liquid heat filling her eyes. "I am."

He smiled widely in the realization of what had happened. Only a short while ago, he had the same look. "I-I didn't know a woman could…" He spoke a bit curiously as she reached up and kissed him passionately. "Does it happen every time?"

To his surprise, Katherine was able to roll them over so she was on top, kissing him hungrily. She seemed to be filled with desire and impatience, and Ned was almost intimidated by her uninhibited reaction.

"You're just so small… compared to me. I didn't want to hurt you." He whispered as he matched her unadulterated passion, deciding that if anyone was going to be hurt it was probably going to him.

Ned delighted as she demonstrated the idea of pain versus pleasure and how the two can sometimes go hand in hand. He held his breath as she began to move down his body, nipping and kissing him in places he never thought a woman's mouth would ever be, and almost lurched up from the bed as her hand wrapped itself around his cock, touching him. He felt his passion grow, the same tightening he felt the first time not long ago, but this time her mouth was wrapped around his cock.

She moved in the same motion as he would have if he was inside her, but this time he did not need to move at all. However, he found that his hips jerked a few times and his thighs started to tremble in response to her administrations.

The tightening increased and he feared he would not be able to control himself, but this did not seem to bother her, in fact as she felt his loins tighten she seemed to double her efforts. The backs of his heels pressed deeply into the bed, searching for leverage, his left hand clutching her lower back.

Quite suddenly, he felt the most incredible feeling of release and fulfillment that he cried out openly in response, his neck and back arching as well. At that moment if he needed to move he doubted he could. A fine time for an ambush to happen, he thought ruefully for a split second. His second time was definitely more interesting and powerful than the first.

Ned laid there motionless as Katherine eased up his body to look at him. He saw the self-satisfied smile on his wife's face and he clutched the back of her head, threading his hands in her soft curls at the nape, in silent adoration.

What had he done in life to deserve such a woman?


	19. Chapter 19

It didn't take long for life at Leoch to fall into a routine again and a few months to pass by quickly. The first of the potatoes were to be harvested and preparations were going underway for storing them with Jim overseeing them while he took a few patients here and there. There were plenty of tenants in need of evaluations from Jim but not many who could easily make their way to him.

He had tried leaving at first, determined to keep up with those who needed him, but her patients' demands on his time and his family's needs quickly forced him to abandon that habit. He was not going to be an absent father like his own and leave Melinda alone to raise their daughter and any future children.

"I wonder who she will grow to be," Jim pondered out loud one night after Faith had fallen asleep on him, her cheek pressed to his sternum.

Melinda was returning the bottle of whiskey to the sideboard - Faith had started to have trouble sleeping as her teeth began to grow in, but rubbing a drop of whiskey on her gums calmed her enough to put her to sleep, and luckily for them, she generally stayed asleep.

"Me too. Sometimes I feel as though she understands what she's watching," Melinda admitted. "Obviously it's just that she's tracking me or you and our movements... but she'll be old enough to learn before you know it."

"Aye," he ran his hand over her hair - it was just getting long enough now to be brushed but would still be a while before it could be plaited or tied off to keep it out of her face. "Soon she'll be walking with wee Eddie, tryin' to keep up with him."

"One day soon," she said, tracing her cheek and then taking their daughter from his arms. "Hopefully she will have a little brother or sister to grow up with soon."

He walked up behind her, his arms around her waist. "Are you thinking down the road, already?"

"I am," she said, setting their daughter down in her cradle before she turned around to face him. "Is that wrong of me?"

He smiled. "No. I think of it just as often," he said, leading her away from the cradle.

As they approached the bed she noticed Jim had begun to make his way back toward the door, but she reached out and grabbed his hand. "Will you stay tonight?" She asked. "I miss you in our bed."

"Aye, of course." His cheeks were tinted as he came back over to her and pulled her close. "I didn't want to rush anythin'... or to pressure ye."

"Well, good thing you could never pressure me," she said, tilting her head and quirking the corner of her mouth into a little smile.

He laughed and her insides felt warm from his gentle blue gaze. "Let's go to bed then," he said and they moved to lay down together. His hand still massaged her back, feeling the touch of her skin through the fabric of her nightgown.

She shifted over to pull herself onto him and chose to show him by capturing his mouth with hers. The kiss became rougher as Jim quickly deepened it, suddenly more desperate for her than she had expected. His smell, his taste, the feeling of his body on hers. It's been too long since they had been together last, but now she wasn't going to let him go.

His heart was thudding, matching the rhythm hers had taken on: quick and anticipatory. She swiped her tongue across his lips but wanted more. "Melinda," he panted, breaking their kiss. "I would never wish to hurt my lovely wife."

"I need you," she whispered, tugging at his shirt, "Please, I want you." She moved back in to kiss him again, rolling her hips to make her point clearer if it wasn't already.

"Are ye sure yer body has healed?" He sighed into the kiss, all restraint failing as his hands automatically moved under her nightgown to caress the skin of her back.

"It's been more than enough time," she told him, mockingly. "You worry too much… you could never hurt me."

He raised a trail of goosebumps as he went, making her arch into him, her hips even more insistent than before. Raising up, she made quick work of ridding herself of her nightgown, but before she could descend to plunder his mouth more, he had flipped them over. "Melinda, ye give me far too much credit," he said as he took off his own shirt before coming down to begin kissing her again.

She pulled him closer to her, relishing that there were no more barriers between them and wanting no space between their bodies. Jim's tongue swept across her lips, begging for entry and she granted it immediately, visiting the mouth with her tongue as well. Her hands traveled down his body to thumb at his trousers.

He smiled into the kiss. "In a hurry?" he teased, leaving her lips to lick a trail down from her jaw.

"Yes," she breathed, back rising as he laved his tongue down her chest, pausing to give gentle care to her breasts. "I want you… I want to feel you inside me."

He licked around each nipple in turn, placing light kisses over them before continuing down, nipping a trail along her body that he soothed as he went. Her nails scraped up his back, head going fuzzy with the sensations he was causing, making his breath turn to shudders as he continued his descent lower on her body. His tongue moved between her thighs, up and down the heated expanse of her flesh, probing inside her only slightly.

Each small movement and flick of his tongue elicited a sound from Melinda, which encouraged him all the more. Her hand came down and her fingers tangled with his curls. "Jim… Don't stop." She whispered, barely audible while her free hand gripped the sheets so tight that her knuckles went white. She did her best not to move her hips, letting him do all the work. "Oh, God." She nearly screamed, but then turned her face to muffle the sound from waking their child that slept in her cradle a few feet from their bed.

She could feel her breath quicken and her stomach clench as she went over the edge with pleasure. Her smiling husband emerged from between her legs, very pleased with himself, indeed. Contentedly, he hummed against her, but before she could become more undone, Jim had pulled away and came up to meet her in a kiss that tasted like both of them.

Melinda pulled him closer, pressing herself against him in a way that had them both moaning into each others' mouths. Her heart seemed to stutter as he nestled between her legs, skin bare, and his cock hard against her. She reached to grab at him, desperate for him to be inside, but unable to find the words to ask. Just as she found her voice, she no longer needed it.

"God, yes," she found herself saying as he buried himself deep within her. "I love you." Her eyes opened, locking gazes with him as they joined. She saw nothing but Jim. Her beautiful husband. "I love you."

"I love ye madly, Mel," he murmured, hand coming up to brush back the hair from her face and cup her cheek.

It tangled in her long, brown hair and he kissed her again. She found herself exploring him, hands trying to take all of him in at once. Then he shifted, changing angles, and he set a faster pace whimpers from her as she found her mind going fuzzy, unable to think much past the delicious sensations that he was causing.

"More," she commanded, gripping his ass again to make his strokes harder, quicker, deeper. "I need more."

She arched her back as he filled her entirely, her nails now digging into him and eliciting a shudder into her neck from him. Responding in kind, he moved his mouth to her neck and then her breasts, driving her towards incoherence as he alternated between sucking and soothing it with flicks of his tongue. He quickened their tempo again and until she was left writhing underneath him, careening towards the edge of bliss.

"More," she whispered into his ear.

Jim traveled back up her jaw. "More?" he breathed into her ear, teasing her with a laugh, nibbling lightly on the lobe as he thrust harder into her.

Obliging, he brought his hand from her hair to slip in between them. "Oh, yes," she cried as his finger circled her center, "So close, Jim."

They came together, their cries silenced by a kiss as they clung to each other, Jim spilling himself completely as she trembled around him. Boneless, completely spent, they laid wrapped in each other, their chests heaving together as they came down, still taking pleasure in each other's mouths.

For a moment, she laid and reveled in the feelings that had become familiar once again. Feeling her husband wrapping his arms around her, she felt safe and loved. And given what he had done, she was certain that they'd have more children; even if not now, if she wanted more children then her husband would give her as much as she wanted. She found herself smiling, completely satiated, and feeling even more desperately in love with him than usual.

I missed you," she whispered, turning on her side and bringing a hand up to his face, tracing from cheek to his swollen lips - she knew he had made similar work of hers, the tingles of their kisses still lingering. "And this time spent together..."

His laugh rumbled low in his chest, his eyes alight even in the darkroom. "Really? I couldn't tell," he teased, petting her nose and returning her smile.

At that, she laughed too. "Maybe I was a little over the top," she admitted as she cuddled closer into his chest, pulling the warmer blanket over them from the edge of the bed."Do you think we woke her?"

"No, ye could never be that way," he teased her, placing a kiss onto her nose. "And I think Faith is still asleep." He resumed stroking her side, gazing into her eyes as if he was still trying to drink more of her up. The hand at her back began tracing her spine, lulling her heavy eyelids to close as she listened to his breathing returning to normal. "Sleep now, my sweet," he said as the last of her effort to stay awake left her and she drifted off to peaceful slumber.

* * *

Melinda enjoyed most days, but her favorites were when she took Faith out to the garden, spread a blanket, and set her down to roll about and play while she watched Jim gather the necessary plants for his medical stores.

Their little girl was thriving in Scotland - they all were.

Faith squealed on the blanket and while her daughter had been sitting up when Melinda set her down, the little girl had flopped onto her back. An insect was humming nearby and the infant arched her back, reaching with her arms to try and catch it.

She moved closer to wave it away, but it had already dodged Faith's grasp. Determined, the four-month-old rolled onto her belly and pushed up onto her hands and knees, rocking back and forth screeching for the dragonfly to wait for her to catch up with it.

Faith hadn't quite mastered the coordination necessary to crawl, but she could tell her daughter was getting closer each day. Jim sat on the floor encouraging her most evenings while Melinda watched and enjoyed her nightly tea as she wrote in her journal, the efforts usually leaving their daughter so exhausted that she frequently would lay on her belly on the floor and go to sleep right there.

"And what are you going to do with that when you catch it, sweet girl?" Melinda asked the little one with a laugh.

The infant turned towards her voice and moved an arm but lost her balance and rolled to her instead, ending on her back, startled, but looking up at her amused mother. Faith smiled triumphantly which only made Melinda laugh more.

"And just what might you two lasses be up to?" Jim asked, brushing dust and dirt from his arms and shirt as he strode over with his basket full of herbs and other sorts of plants he used in his line of work. "Ye both look bonny."

"Faith has learned her first nature lesson I guess you could call it when a butterfly flew by her," she explained as she scooted over so her husband could join them on the ground. "How's the plant and herb collecting coming along?"

"I think I have enough to get me through for the next few weeks," he said, reaching for a mint leaf from his basket of freshly plucked herbs. He stuck it in his mouth and chewed for a minute before leaning away from them and spitting into the grass. "I saw to it that Ned had begun to dig out the cellar. He said he dinna think he'll stop tasting the dirt of digging for a week, but the cellar will be ready when the last of the potatoes are harvested."

She nodded, happy to hear of the work that was coming along nicely "We'll have to set some aside for planting next season and store the rest for winter. Hopefully, there will be a decent crop." She replied.

"Hopefully, we won't ruin too many in the process of harvesting them," he voiced his fear. "It's a new crop and we're no familiar wi' it. Ian has his book on growing potatoes but there's still more than enough room for error on our part. And then there's the small matter of getting the folk around here to eat them."

"Ah, but I thought we had a plan for that." Melinda reached over and plucked Faith from her back, setting her upright again.

Their daughter smiled up at her father, but Faith had to look up at such a sharp angle she nearly toppled over backward again. Jim reached into his sporran and pulled out a whittled animal her uncle Daniel had made - it was difficult to tell whether the creature was supposed to be a dog or a cat but it certainly had four legs, a tail, and a lean body.

"Daniel will be bringing the priest when he returns home next week," he confirmed, smiling as he watched Faith play with the toy. "I dinna expect it will take more than a day or two to harvest the potatoes once he is here."

"And you're sure you're alright with doing this now?" She asked him.

"Faith should have a proper Christening," he insisted, smiling at both her and their daughter. "Here at Leoch with her family present. We should celebrate wi' the tenants as well so they can finally see how things are coming along."

* * *

The harvest hadn't taken long - once they'd decided for sure that the potatoes were ready for harvesting. There had been more than a few questions about how they were meant to be cooked and eaten before Jim and Melinda explained they would be served several ways after Faith's Christening and that all the tenants were invited.

An air of anticipation descended as Daniel arrived with a priest from a village just over the border into the Clancy lands - it had been a short time since the priest at Leoch had passed away suddenly. A new priest had yet to be assigned to the church there but word had reached them of Father Drummond traveling through the area on his way further north and he'd agreed to come and Christen Faith properly in exchange for room and board.

"Catherine?" Katherine had asked with raised brows as Faith slept in her arms following the brief ceremony. "Why on earth would you want to settle my name on the poor child for her Christening? Even with the C, I can see the geture that was made."

"You mean everything to me and I know you will be there for your niece as much as I am now that you are here," she explained.

"It was my idea in the first place," Jim added, reaching out to take his daughter into his arms. "If I must say."

"Well, it is an honor," Katherine brow furrowed as she settled into a chair to rest before the time to assist Mrs. Crook in the kitchen arrived. "Thank you both."

Faith then began to stir in Jim's arms, her fussing indicative of needing a fresh change of her nappy. "I'll take her," she volunteered. "I should change her into something more suitable for tonight anyway."

"What's wrong with what she's wearing?" He inquired.

"If she's going to have a taste of potatoes tonight, I'd rather she wear something that isn't so new," she explained as Jim passed Faith to her. "We'll be back in time to help in the kitchen."

"You better," Katherine snorted. "You're the one who knows best what we should be doing to them and whether they'll have turned outright."

Melinda swept up the stairs with Faith and laid the baby girl on the bed while she changed her. Faith began babbling to her and squirmed onto her stomach while she was busy folding and putting Katherine's beautifully handmade dress out of harm's way. She noticed Faith seemed to sense her mother's preoccupation with other things as she continued to emit strings of meaningless syllables.

"I'm being silly, I know," she told her. "Now let's head down to help get ready for your party."

There was a spot in the corner of the kitchen where blankets had been piled and obstacles erected to keep Faith and Eddie from getting underfoot while their mothers were working at the table—though Eddie was beginning to grow proficient at climbing over the unorthodox walls.

Melinda deposited Faith there with the silver rattle her father had given her and it had promptly entered Faith's mouth and she began gnawing on it. Eddie, a few months older than his cousin, crawled over to watch what Faith was doing with it at which point the little girl removed it from her mouth and waved it around, splattering her older cousin with droplets of drool—the boy lost interest and moved back to the small wooden horse he'd abandoned.

Melinda joined Katherine and Mrs. Crook dicing up potatoes and other root vegetables for the stew. Daniel came in at one point with a leg of mutton for them to use as they saw fit—the rest of the sheep with two of its brethren and two pigs would be roasted in the yard. She went through the pile of potatoes and set aside the biggest ones to be buried and cooked in the coals directly after the meat had finished. After that,

She pulled aside a number of greens and raw vegetables to put into what she could of a salad—Katherine and Mrs. Crook watching her with raised eyebrows the whole time. Jim was determined to encourage as many of the tenants to eat greens as could be managed and had instructed her to do so—the last thing he wanted to come wintertime was to be called to treat scurvy.

Two other women soon slipped into the kitchen after having assisted in the necessary outdoor preparations. With the extra hands, Melinda and Katherine were able to slip away to change before gathering the children and going out to greet the guests as they began arriving.

Melinda quickly located Jim standing with Daniel and Ned not far from where the mutton and pork were roasting over the fire. She crossed to them with Faith grinning at the sight of her father—and her husband breaking into a proud smile of his own when he spotted them coming.

"There ye are lass," he said, reaching to take their daughter from her arms. "Don't you look bonny. Are ye eager to try those potatoes yer mam has had us growing? Goin' to put that wee tooth of yers to good use."

"I think there's a second just coming through there," she said, pointing to a pale spot along the babe's lower gums.

The little girl twisted her head to avoid being prodded, spotted both her uncle Daniel and uncle Ned, and reached for either of them to save her. Daniel obliged with a faint smile largely hidden beneath his bushy beard.

"Dan, Dan," Faith babbled as she twisted her fingers into it and pulled.

"Hi, sweet one," Daniel said as he pressed a kiss to her cheek and the baby girl burst into laughter.

As the tenants and their families began to arrive, they stopped to make their congratulations to the Lord and his family, to admire Faith before enjoying the food, drink, and company of the larger party. Melinda took Faith back when the meat and stew were ready to be served.

With so much going on, the little girl watched everything with a keen interest and enthusiasm. A few young boys excitedly set about the task of laying the potatoes in the bed of glowing charcoal before Daniel and Jim both raked the rest of the embers on top of them to bake.

Faith was growing heavy as her exhaustion took over—it had been a long day with more activity than her small body could handle without a nap. Melinda drifted to the edge of the crowd and found a place on a bench where she could lean against the side of the house while her babe slept in her arms.

The meat and ale had taken care of much of the tenants' wariness over some of the food options they were unfamiliar with. She watched two children playing with leaves of watercress before their mother could scold them.

The potatoes were proving a bit more popular than the leafy greens. The scent of them smeared with butter wafted over to her and made her stomach rumble—she had been busy with Faith and chatting with their guests and hadn't had enough to eat.

The smell roused Faith as well and she stirred in Melinda's arms. "Did you have a good nap?" She inquired, smiling at her daughter.

Faith smiled back and reached up to grab one of her stray curls. She bent her forehead to Faith's inspiring a string of giggles. The smell of food was closer now and she realized someone had come up while she was preoccupied.

Jim stood with two of the baked potatoes in his hands, the blackened skins sliced open with buttery steam rising from them. She moved to sit Faith up in her lap but her husband remained still, a soft smile on his face.

"Are those both for you?" she asked, nodding to the potatoes.

"No," he answered, blinking, and taking the seat beside her. "Sorry I just… didna want to disturb the two of ye like that. Wi' yer heads together that way… I couldna tell where yer hair ended and hers began—framed yer faces and made yer smiles shine brighter." He balanced one of the potatoes on his leg and reached out to smooth a curl back from each of their faces. "I'll ne'er tire of seeing the two of ye like that, Melinda." He trailed his finger down her cheek and along her jaw before raising her chin for a kiss.

Faith was apparently just as hungry as Melinda was and reached out for the potato, but she deftly caught her wrist before Faith could burn herself. "Slow down there," she laughed. "You're going to hurt yourself, little one."

"Mamamama," Faith babbled, looking up at her mother and reaching for the potato.

"Can she have it?" he asked, loosening a small bit and blowing on it to cool it for her.

"Yes," she said with a nod. "Let's see how she likes it."

Faith pushed the small, butter-soaked bite around in her mouth with her tongue, the unfamiliar movement causing her to scrunch up her face. She swallowed it eventually and began kicking her legs in approval and reaching for more. "Dadadada mmm," she jabbered, opening her mouth in anticipation.

"Aye, that's right," he beamed. "Da. That's me. Here ye are. I suppose ye're hankering for a change from what yer mam can give ye of her milk—though I've yet to tire of yer mam myself."

Melinda snorted quietly. "People can hear you," she reminded her husband.

"And ye think I'm ashamed of wanting ye?" He smirked at her. "I'll never be."

"No," she admitted. "But I can think of a better time and place than—"

"Ye know ye need only name a time and place," he told her. "I'm familiar wi' yer appetites, Melinda."

"If I've an appetite at the moment, Jim, it isn't for that," she informed him as her stomach grumbled again. "Now take the baby and give me that potato. I'm starved."


	20. Chapter 20

Having settled into life at Leoch once more, Jim and Melinda began to realize that time passed differently when there was a growing child involved. The seasons still formed a backdrop by which to measure its passage, but more and more often things began to fall into categories of before or after Faith was able to do something new.

Katherine and Ned would smile indulgently at their pride and amazement over Faith's every accomplishment, no matter how small—perhaps remembering them of their own pride over little Edward as he began crawling and talking and taking his first steps, but had been more subdued since they found out they were expecting their own child.

The young couple was sure to be too busy with the expansion of their family to take proper pride in any milestones beyond those that meant less work for themselves—sleeping through the night and weaning being the ones that first came to mind

"You know, this is our first real Christmas together," Melinda remarked as December advanced.

Jim smiled at her. "I much prefer this one to the last myself," he agreed.

Faith crawled across the floor in front of the fireplace to where he sat in his chair with a book open in his lap. She reached up and grabbed the edge of his boot to pull herself up onto her wobbly legs.

"How would ye mark the day in England?" he inquired, closing his book and setting it aside in order to reach down for Faith to take hold of his fingers with her chubby fists. Helping to carry her weight, he rose from the chair and walked her over to where Melinda sat brushing her hair.

"We would bring an evergreen into the house to decorate," she said mischievously, watching for the skeptically cocked eyebrow—he didn't disappoint. "We would sing Christmas carols, feast, put up stockings by the fire for Saint Nick to fill with little gifts and treats… but mostly it was a time to spend with family and friends, drinking and enjoying one another's company."

She reached down to raise Faith and turn her around, swapping her hands for Jim's while he backed up to give Faith a new target.

"Would ye like to do anything of that sort this year? To show Faith…" He said, smiling at her.

She shook her head. "She won't miss what she never knew," she told him. "What do you do here?" She asked.

Jim paused for a moment before his face broke into an expression of shock. Faith had let go of her fingers and took two steps unassisted before pitching forward. He caught her deftly before her face could collide with the floor. Having startled herself, Faith began to cry, tucking her face into her father's chest as he held her close.

It took a few minutes for her parents' excitement to calm her down but their daughter still refused to leave Jim's arms instead succumbing to his warmth and drifting off to sleep. "We would light a yule log and have a great feast," he said quietly, glancing over at her. "We didna bring an entire tree indoors as yer family did."

Once he laid their daughter down for the night, she assumed the Christmas conversation had been laid to rest as well, but a few days later she retired with an overtired Faith to their room for the night and found that Jim had placed a single bough from a Scots pine in the vase she usually kept on the mantel—it had been empty for some time and placed far out of Faith's reach.

"I didna think it would do goo to bring an entire tree indoors but that little bit should do good enough, aye?" He asked from behind her.

Melinda turned and was quickly engulfed in his arms with Faith babbling her approval between the two of them. "Thank you," she whispered to him, rising onto her toes to kiss him.

"Aye, well… Faith may no miss what she's never known, but I thought you might," he explained.

She moved to the meager branch to allow their daughter to investigate it until she began trying to eat the needles, pulling a disgusted face that sent them both into a fit of laughter. Jim took Faith from her while she spent a few minutes rummaging around for small things they could use for decoration.

She draped and tied a few other scraps of ribbon and lace over the branch, tilting her head in contemplation before nodding at the task's having been completed.

* * *

The pair of unassisted steps Faith managed before Christmas remained an anomaly until after the new year dawned. That was when the little girl began loosening her grip on their fingers to take tentative steps alone though she preferred to keep a hand on something to steady her as she began making her way in the world on her own.

Sometimes Faith would use a chair to pull herself up and hold onto it as she located the leg of a table, only letting go at the last moment with her arm already stretched out toward her goal in order to catch herself when her balance failed her.

"She's walking early," Katherine noted as she struggled to get comfortable in the last stages of her pregnancy. "Eddie didn't take his first steps before he was a year, but he was managing clear words at this point."

"She seems to have 'mama' and 'da' pretty well in hand," Melinda pointed out as she and Katherine watched Faith doing her best to chase after Edward.

Her daughter was still too hesitant in her steps and opted to get back on her hands and knees to continue her pursuit. The little boy squealed whenever Faith got close enough to reach out to touch him and would scurry away, forcing his younger cousin to look for him again and change course.

"It'll come," Katherine assured her older sister with a positive tone. "She's doing fine."

She nodded. "Eddie seems to be doing better with her. He'll be a fine big brother in a few weeks."

"Yes, though it helps that Faith can do more herself now," Katherine said, resting her hands on her swollen belly.

"They're becoming quite the playmates," she agreed.

"Gee! Gee!" Faith screeched in frustration as her cousin eluded her once more.

"Looks like she's got Eddie down as well," Katherine laughed then winced as the baby kicked her hard. She rubbed the side of her belly. "When are you and Jim going to be giving Faith a brother or sister?" Her sister hinted, grinning when she blushed.

"I haven't even begun weaning Faith yet," she protested, reaching out and catching Faith as she made her way past. She lifted her up and settled the child on her lap.

"Mamamama, down," Faith said, pointing to her cousin and fidgeting to get down again. Melinda shifted her around a bit until she captured Faith's attention.

"What do you say, Miss Faith? Are you ready to wean and start on parritch?" She asked.

Faith's pucker of disgust was probably directed at her mother for refusing to let her down to play but her timing had both women laughing. Realizing she was at the center of attention, Faith settled enough for Melinda to begin playing with her hair, wrapping one of Faith's curls around her finger.

"I've never seen a lass with such hair at her age," Katherine remarked looking to the mop of dark hair on Eddie's head, straighter than Faith's curls but only about half the length when Faith's were stretched straight.

"I never had anyone who could tell me what I was like at this age," she confessed. "You were born after me and my mother and father weren't as forthcoming, so the only stories I have of me at a young age begin when I was five."

"Well, some of the faces she pulls remind me of you," Katherine told her. "There's plenty of Jim, he has that knack for making the rest of us laugh like that. But there's a lot of you in there as well—that's plain as day. You may not know from others' stories, but my best guess is she looks like you did."

Melinda smiled at Faith and was rewarded with a toothy grin from the child in her lap as well—she was up to five teeth and had started eating more solid foods though the potatoes remained a steady favorite along with any vegetable she could boil until it was soft enough to mash. Maybe it was time to start actively weaning her?

* * *

It was two weeks later that Katherine gave birth to her second child, a daughter. Madeline.

"That was the easiest birth this family has seen in two years," Melinda remarked as she cradled her new niece in her arms, bringing the infant over to Ned after Katherine had asked her to.

"More Banks than Gordon in her is my guess," her sister quipped from the bed despite her exhaustion.

Young Eddie was perched on the bed beside her, disappointed that there was yet another girl in the house. Jim's brother Daniel had declined to tramp upstairs to see the latest addition.

"No need to overwhelm the wee lass so soon," Daniel had said with a shrug. "From what Melinda says, the lass is healthy and no going anywhere. We can become acquainted in our own sweet time."

"Ba," Faith told Jim as she pointed to her new cousin. "Ba!"

"Aye, sweet girl. That's the new bairn. No," he informed her, intercepting her hand before she poked the slumbering baby in the eye. "No ye canna grab her. Ye must be gentle, a nighean."

"Ba," Faith whispered at the baby, then turned to Eddie to make sure he had seen his new sister. "Gee, ba."

Eddie had wobbled over from Katherine's bedside to peer at the baby and squinted at her. He turned to his father—unimpressed—and requested, "Mama," gesturing to the bed.

Ned rolled his eyes and moved to let Eddie walk to the bed for some time with Katherine again. "Fate, come," the boy called to Faith who was ignoring him. "Fate!" he squealed, loud enough to wake the baby, who began squirming against the blanket that swaddled her, fussing at the constraint and noise.

"Sssss," Faith hissed at her cousin, wagging a scolding finger. She turned back to Madeline and started crooning a string of 'ba's at her again.

Jim and Melinda smiled at each other over their daughter's and niece's heads. It did look like their little girl would be a great big sister one day.

She began actively working to wean Faith after that—though her daughter was suddenly reluctant, fascinated as she was with Madeline. She would approach her looking to nurse whenever Katherine sat down to feed the baby.

Rather than risk Faith throwing a tantrum and disturbing Katherine and Madeline, she rose and lifted Faith into her arms, taking her for a bit of a walk around the room before heading for the kitchen to see if she could get her daughter to drink some goat's milk.

Faith was fascinated with the baby and it had led her to reflect on how she would react to becoming a big sister herself. Her daughter would be turning one in about two months' time and was already quite an active toddler.

Given how quickly it had taken for Melinda to become pregnant with Faith, it could still be some time before she got pregnant again—her courses had only begun again as her daughter started trying solid foods and nursed less often, though she wasn't having them regularly again yet. Once Faith was weaned completely, she knew that the chances of her becoming pregnant with their second child would increase.

Though the children could be tiring, watching them all playing and growing together… she was ready for more. Though she hadn't brought the subject up with Jim for a bit of time, she was sure he would be enthusiastic at the idea of having more children and knew he longed for a son of his own.

Though her daughter turned her nose up at the goat's milk the last few times Melinda had encouraged her to drink it, this time Faith took it, swallowing it with resignation if not active enthusiasm.

A few minutes later, Katherine came in carrying Madeline in one arm and a parcel and some letters from the postman in the other. "It's mostly from France," her sister declared setting it down before sitting herself.

Jim and Ned appeared at the back door covered in dirt and withered vegetation from the fields having spent the morning examining them and planning the year's planting.

"It looks like your cousin Matthew sent some new reading material along with his letter," she informed him as she poked through the mail they'd received. "And it looks like you have another lamentation from someone unnamed as well." She held the letter out for Jim to take before Faith reclaimed her attention by coughing on the mouthful of milk she was working to swallow.

"Not so fast, sweet girl," she cautioned and set the bottle aside so she could pat Faith's back and help her catch her breath before the child's coughing caused her to spit up the milk.

Faith's coughing subsided but her breathing was ragged for a few minutes as she trembled in her arms, blinking back tears and refusing to fuss. Melinda stood Faith in her lap so her daughter could rest against her shoulder and bury her face in her mother's neck, the wetness on her face seeping into the fabric along her collarbone.

With the little one calmed down, she looked to Jim who had been uncharacteristically quiet through the minor ordeal—he would usually at least come over to check Faith and see for himself that she was all right.

Jim was pale and clutching a piece of paper in either hand, his gaze darting frantically from one to the other with increasing disbelief.

"My love? What is it?" Melinda rose and walked over to peer at the pages he held.

The letter he held in his hand was from a name she had never wanted to hear or read again. Rick Payne. Before she could read anything else, she snatched the page from her husband's hand to see it for herself.

Jim had sent muttering in Gaelic under his breath, words, and phrases that caught Faith's attention so that she picked her head up from Melinda's shoulder to see what her parents were concerned with. She reached for the parchment but she held it out of her reach, rereading the words over and over

"Tha' bastard had the nerve to finally apologize for taking you and then he… he... claims this?" He sneered, looking like he was ready to tear the letter in two. "He claims my child to be his and that ye stayed of yer own free will? That ye wanted him in yer bed and that binds you to be his wife and not mine? I'll kill him with my bare hands. I will."

Jim's eyes fell to Faith who scowled at the papers in their hands, her brows knitting in imitation of the confusion, fear, and frustration her parents were feeling.

At the sight of her, the air leeched from his building fury and he reached for Faith who went to him gladly, her face brightening as her fingers lodged in Jim's hair. Melinda set the papers down and then sighed, glancing over at him.

"He never touched me, Jim," she muttered. "How can he do this?"

He held her close and she felt their daughter's arm on her back as well, as though Faith was trying to hold onto both Jim and Melinda. "Christ, many ways. He could have paid the men on his ship to lie for him," he said, pressing a kiss to their daughter's cheek. "But I believe ye, Melinda."

"What are we going to do?" She whispered into his chest.


	21. Chapter 21

Faith was finally asleep but they couldn't bear to put her into her cradle. Instead, Jim placed her in the pocket of space between them in their bed and they both watched as her chest rose and fell steadily, her fists twitching periodically.

There was only one thing they had decided so far—Faith would stay at Leoch. It was the only place they could be sure their daughter would be safe.

"You should stay here with her," Jim whispered, reaching out and tucking one of Faith's sweaty curls behind her ear—she gave off a great deal of heat whenever she slept, a trait, Melinda had been quick to point out, she shared with her father.

"But you'll need me," she objected. "If there's any chance that we can change the way this all turns out, you'll need my word to what happened on that boat and that isn't the kind of information that can be passed along by letter. It's too slow and if it fell into the wrong hands… that would not be good."

Faith scowled in her sleep and he reached down to smooth the furrow in her brow. "And what of Faith, hmm? D'ye think she willna need her mother?" He argued.

"As much as she'll need her father," she countered, her voice breaking with the force of her emotion.

Their wet eyes met over their slumbering daughter. Jim reached up and tucked one of Melinda's curls behind her ear—it was a stubborn one that tended to fall against her cheekbone in the same area Faith's often did.

When he spoke again, his voice was quiet and controlled, betraying to her the emotion he was fighting hard to keep in check. "Melinda, I want ye and Faith safe here at Lallybroch. I'll find a way to keep Rick from making things worse. He won't ever lay his hands on ye or our child even if things dinna go right."

"I'm not letting you face this alone," she pressed, glancing over to where he laid beside her.

"So ye'd leave Faith here on her own?" Jim scoffed.

"She… she wouldn't be alone," she insisted though wasn't sure whether she was making her argument for his benefit or to reinforce her own resolve. "She has Katherine and Ned here and her cousins."

"Katherine and Ned have their own bairns to look after," he sighed. "We canna ask them to do this too."

Melinda reached over to take hold of her husband's chin, to force him to look up from Faith and at her. "You can and you will. They'll understand and it'll only be for a little while, right? We're going to be back for her," she promised, though they both knew it wasn't something they could truly control.

"She'll no grow up wi'out us," he agreed with determination, holding her gaze. "We canna let that happen."

"It's not the worst thing," she said as tears rolled down her cheeks and her eyes dropped to Faith. "Not for her, anyway. Not at this age. She's… so young still. She knows us but… It'll be harder for us… leaving her." Melinda ran a finger along Faith's round cheek and smiled when the corner of the child's mouth ticked up—like her father.

"All right," he finally consented. "It will be some time to gather the men and provisions we'll need. We've… some time wi' her yet. Not enough, but we'll see her first birthday before we leave."

Jim slipped his arm under Faith and lifted her, sliding closer to her and resting Faith on his chest. With her cheek pressed into the shirt above his sternum, their daughter's toes reached just to his navel—a far cry from when she stretched barely the length of his forearm only eleven months earlier.

"There'll never be enough time," she agreed, curling against him. "She grows so fast as it is. Changing every day."

"We'll miss so much, but she'll be safe," he promised her. "We'll make sure of it." He reached down and pulled the blanket up so that it covered all three of them, and they fell asleep together.

* * *

Ned found Katherine sitting before their fireplace reading a book, fresh from her bath when he came into their chambers. Her long damp dark hair was brushed out over her shoulders to dry and she was wrapped in his thick white fur robe, the bulk of which made her look even more petite than she was. When she saw him, a smile lit up her face.

_God, she gets more beautiful every day_ , he thought as he walked to where she was seated and dropped to his knees before her. "What do you think is going to happen?" He asked and leaned forward to plant a gentle kiss on her lips. "How are you feeling?"

"It's been a tiring few days, but I am feeling better," she said softly, then sighed. "Though I don't know what my sister and Jim plan to do. It must be a terrifying ordeal for them both."

Ned had an idea of what he may do, knowing that he would do anything to protect his own children and that if anyone tried to claim them for their own... he would make them suffer. His rage boiled over and he had to shake his head to make it simmer off. "Jim is going to find Rick," he told her. "I don't know what your sister will do."

Katherine shrugged and then reached over to place her hand on his cheek. "No one is going to do that to us," she whispered. "We'll be safe here and Jim and Melinda will make sure of it for their daughter as well as our own children."

He nodded, trying to breathe to keep calm and remind himself of that, but he couldn't help but worry. "Where is our little princess?" He asked.

Her smile deepened to one of sheer contentment. "Madeline is asleep in her cradle. I just fed her," she said, motioning to the cradle by their bed.

"You did?" He grinned. "Are you ready for bed then?"

"Yes, are you?" She asked, slowly standing and pulling him to his feet.

He chuckled, dropping to kiss her shoulder. "That depends... what are you asking me?" He said, smiling at her as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her mouth.

Ned opened Katherine's robe slowly to find nothing underneath and smiled, moving her slowly to sit against the padding of the chair behind her again. He slowly pushed his knee between her legs and slid his hand between them. Finding her soaking wet, he slid two fingers inside and heard her moan her pleasurably.

His tongue in her mouth mimicked the motion of his fingers pumping in and out of her, and he massaged her swollen nub with his calloused thumb until she came. He kissed her neck and shoulders while he palmed her breasts and rolled her sensitive pink nipples between his thumb and forefinger, causing her to gasp in pleasure.

"Mmm, Ned," she giggled and turned to look at him, brushing her nose up the side of his neck playfully as she pressed kisses there too. "Take me to bed, hmm?"

"Yes," he said happily. "I will."

Ned was always assertive, but there was something about this side of him, when he showed her his soft side and was sweet and caring to her in their bedroom, that turned her blood to molten fire in her veins.

She watched as her skin grew flushed once he laid her down in their bed, a fine sheen of sweat shone on her heaving breasts and around her stomach. "I hope I am up to your standards, my love." She whispered softly.

"Always," he breathed, raking his hands over her body as he smiled. "You are too beautiful for me."

Her body was pulled snug against him and his lips tasted her own, while Ned's burning touch continued to slide over her shoulder, his fingers leaving their mark on her soul. He gripped her so that she could not move. Katherine was caught in her bull's grasp, prey to be devoured with hunger.

The hungry kisses on her lips continued, while his hard cock in his trousers pressed against her soft flesh. She could not remember the last time he had slept in anything, and she thought of his pale body lit by the moonlight in her memories. He pulled away from her slightly, leaving her lying naked on top of the mattress. She laid there waiting, the cool air on her skin causing her senses to spike as she watched him discard his clothes. He never looked away from her, not even when he pulled down his trousers and underclothes.

He moved toward her on the bed and waited for a beat to confirm her willingness, allows the heat from her body to move through his hand, felt the twitch of his fingers reflexively tighten around the globe of her flesh, saw her chin lift as she exhaled a slight moan under the pressure of his touch and then he leaned in to taste her mouth. Their bodies began to communicate in unison again and he heard her moan as his arms caressed her back.

She felt a welcome tenderness in her sore breasts as he pressed her close to his chest. Her nerves were alive and she reveled in the heightened sensation. He laced his fingers through her hair, grasping her locks with a tender possessiveness. Skin to skin, they both feel the racing of their respective hearts beating against and with each other. When he heard another moan, he pulled away yet again. This time she hissed frustratedly and he nearly laughed, appreciating her regal indignation. He had no intention of refusing her but he wanted to adore her, not yet ravish her, at least not yet.

Her husband descended on her, kissing down her body, starting at her lips before making a trail down her neck to her collarbone. His hands claimed her, stroking over the peaks of her breasts, her nipples hardened with desire. She arched into his touch as he paid attention to her nipples, pinching them between his thumb and forefinger until she squirmed.

"Do you like that?" he asked, moving his head so that he could flick his tongue over the tip of her nipple, his fingers squeezing the flesh so that he could nip at it.

"I want you, Ned," she gasped when his fingers drifted lower. "Come here..."

He looked up at her, those bright green eyes taking her in as he climbed back up her body, hoving above her. "Are you sure?" he questioned against her lips, his warm breath fanning over her features. "I want to make sure you're to be ready." He rested against her stomach, his chest crushed to her breasts, while her fingers clung to the muscular ripples of his back.

He allowed himself time to re-memorize her, inch by inch, until he finally raised his eyes to meet hers. He gasped at the sight. In the candlelight, her face was flushed and glowing, her brown hair backlit and free, the curls loose and awry, tumbling over her shoulders. She was magnificent and as he looked up at her, he was in awe.

"Ned, please," she pleaded and this tone was different. "I need you."

He hovered above her, cradling her face, gazing into her eyes, poised tenderly. When he finally entered her, it was not before he's hovered his mouth over her belly, still soft from holding their babe in there not too long ago protected.

It was not before he has pressed his forehead to hers, gripped her eyes with his own, laced his fingers through hers, and whispered, "I love you." It was not before he had taken her nipples into his mouth only to feel the sweetened hint of warm milk in his mouth. It was not before she was so open, so flushed, so languid and so a part of him already, that when he entered her he's not sure if he ever truly left-that was how at home he felt.

He caught her in a bruising kiss while sinking into her heat, his body claiming hers and she moaned into the kiss. He stilled for a moment, allowing her to adjust to him. She had not expected to have any difficulty because they hadn't when becoming intimate after she had given birth to Eddie, even if they had waited a bit after that compared to now, but she did not think that it mattered too much.

She was pleasantly surprised at the pinch in her stomach as he began to thrust into her, his left hand gripping her bent leg to give him leverage against her. His pelvis ground against her own, while her body rose to meet his efforts. One of her hands hung loosely over his shoulder, while the other slipped down his back to the curve of his behind, applying pressure so that he would thrust harder into her, milking her body with pleasure.

"Katherine, oh, yes," he moaned against her lips.

She pulled away from the kiss to look up at him, the stubborn soul that she so desperately wanted to keep beside her. Her legs tightened around his body and his hand found refuge against the side of her face as he looked deeply into her eyes. She felt vulnerable, fully exposed as he dared to stare deeply into her gaze. A tear escaped her, and she noticed the look of concern cross his features as he wiped it away.

He stilled inside of her, causing her to quiver with need. "Are you alright, my love?" He asked.

"Yes. It's just... no one but you has ever looked at me the way you do," she whispered with a teary smile, full of love. "I love you so much... and I am happy to see you return my feelings just as much as I give to you."

Ned's expression softened and he nodded at her, pressing kisses all over her face until he once again claimed her lips. She felt as though she was going to explode with the emotions that he provoked, belonging, pure happiness, and the fear of losing such a precious thing. She felt as though she was being pushed towards the brink of euphoria when he once again continued his vigorous efforts to elicit pleasure from her.

Her moans grew more carefree and breathless with Ned's attention to kissing every part of her body he could. All the sounds of the house and wind howling outside fell away. It was only them and the sound of their lovemaking, for it could be called nothing else.

"Ned," she moaned as she felt herself beginning to come undone. "Oh, god... yess.. yesss.."

His pace quickened and he felt her orgasm gathering and head her breath catch. He gently plucked and pulled at each of her nipples in turn until she was gasping his name. He worked his fingers in slow strokes on her until she was bucking her hips against his hand again. He could see the moisture on her hips and thighs, and even trickling from within her, spread by her wild movements and his steady hand.

When the wave of another climax, at last, washed over her, he quickly shed the rest of his clothes and dove under the blankets and furs of their bed. That was when she realized Ned had yet to have his own climax yet.

"Be careful, if you want to go again," she reminded him, her smile dropped and a primal look present in her eyes when they found his own. "Just go slow."

Ned gulped, trying his hardest to resist the sweet temptation of that hungry look. Even if he wanted nothing more but to devour her when she looked at him like she was right now. He slowly buried himself inside her again, reveling in the warmth of her as her mouth opened in a soft moan at the friction.

"Is that alright?" he asked, voice strained with lust.

She interlaced their fingers together, pressing both of their hands into the mattress and searching for his mouth to kiss as she adjusted to him. "Yes," she whispered the moment before he started moving inside of her again.

Everything else disappeared. Nothing but the feeling of him inside of her – filling her, completing her. He buried his face into her neck, biting on her skin as he thrust into her. Katherine keened, legs snaking around him as she lifted herself up to meet his thrusts. Her name fell from his lips in incoherent sentences and he still had the same effects on her.

He was everywhere at once, from the smell of him infiltrating her senses to his hands tightly clutching hers. Her eyes closed as she felt pleasure boil in her stomach and a familiar flutter echoed through her veins.

"Look at me, love." She heard him say, the sound of his voice mixed with the drumming of her heart and the wet sounds of their skin slapping together.

She opened her eyes to meet his and it's all so familiar, the way he was looking at her, his hand coming to stroke the side of her face reassuringly, lovingly. As her climax bubbled to the surface again, she held him close to her as they rode their highs together, Ned grunting against her skin as his movements grow erratic and uncoordinated, his seed filling her. Katherine closed her eyes, too many emotions emerging from all parts of her soul.

He collapsed on top of her and she cradled his head against her chest, fingers weaving through his hair as they silently recovered. "Mm, I missed seeing you like this," he whispered and wrapped his arms around her petite body. "I love you…"

"I must be lucky that you don't seek others when we can't be together," she said as she buried her face into his chest, feeling his heart beating wildly against her ear.

His fingers slid into the mess her hair had become, long digits sliding through the waves of brown that were pooling around them. The night was quiet when he whispered to her softly, "You know that I will always choose you, right? I would never lay with another woman. It's always going to be you, Katherine."

"It's always going to be you for me as well, my love," she whispered against his chest.

Her heart was hammering against her chest when he rolled off her to lie sweatily beside her and they fell asleep in each other's arms. Well, at least Madeline woke up and needed another feeding.

* * *

The morning they knew they would be leaving, Melinda stood in their bedroom with Faith sitting propped against their pillows. Faith—now fully weaned out of necessity—had a bottle of goats milk and was content to simply sit, sip, and watch her mother double and triple-check everything in the room to be sure nothing was being left behind—nothing but her daughter who unknowingly held her heart in her chubby little fists.

Finally, Melinda sat on the edge of the bed and simply watched her daughter. She and Jim had both been doing it—memorizing every detail of her face and personality only to start all over again the next day when they noticed that she had grown a bit more, that her dark curls were finally long enough to tie back and out of her face, that she was steadier in her steps, that she could say more words.

Katherine and Ned had been quick to agree to Jim's request that they take Faith under their protection until they should return. Her sister, in particular, had gone out of her way to give Jim and Melinda as much time to themselves with Faith—insisting she left any preparations in the kitchen to herself and Andrea, pushing for Ned to be trusted with tasks Jim would normally undertake himself.

Melinda had insisted that they mark Faith's first birthday in some way and Jim agreed. They didn't want another large and showy gathering like they'd had for her Christening but wouldn't let the day pass like any other. She especially wanted to leave Faith with something while they were gone, though if they succeeded, she knew—hoped, prayed—Faith would never even remember the separation once they returned as she got older.

Jim made an effort to set aside the demands of gathering and supplying his men to spend the day with his family. A small picnic was arranged with help from Katherine and Andrea. She carried the larger basket while her husband had insisted to carry the blanket and smaller basket. Faith rode atop Jamie's shoulders, her fingers gripping his hair as tight as he could stand.

He'd taken her on a horse once or twice, holding her tightly in front of him on the saddle—trying to keep the horse calm as she emitted high pitched squeals of excitement was a chore (more easily accomplished when he had one of the stable boys sit with her on one of the steadier draft horses that didn't go very fast while the boy would keep tight hold of the horse's bridle).

Every so often when she squealed he made a point of bouncing her, savoring the sound of her delighted laughter. They could see the whole of the house and yard from their eventual perch. Faith puckered her way through some softened mutton before gorging herself on strawberries from a patch Andrea had coaxed into existence in the corner of the garden—they grew wild in scattered patches about the grounds but had resisted to anyone else's attempts at transplantation in years past.

Faith slept in Jim's arms on the walk back, her red-stained lips and fingers from the strawberries leaving marks on his shirt. When she woke, they had brought her to his study. Inspired by the stains left by their daughter's small fingers, Jim had found some paint that had been used on one of the outbuildings.

Careful not to make too much of a mess, he and Melinda painted each of Faith's hands and pressed them to the center of a piece of paper. She was able to dry Faith's hands with a handkerchief to keep her from making more of a mess while Melinda painted Jim's left hand for him to press to the left side of Faith's small handprints. She then did the same to herself but with her right hand and on the right side, leaving Faith's small hands bookended with one from each of her parents.

While Faith pressed her stained hand against her mother's stained palm, Jim took up his quill and—careful not to smudge their drying handprints—jotted down the date and the occasion.

"With any luck, we'll be home in time to do this again with you next year for your second birthday," Melinda whispered to Faith as she applied oil that was more effective in removing the pigment from their hands.

The paper was folded down the middle once it had dried and Jim had been keeping it in their room ever since.

Melinda retrieved it from between two books and brought it over to the bed. As she'd done numerous times in the weeks since making it, she settled Faith in her lap and unfolded the paper. The little girl did what she always did and immediately pressed her palms to the marks she'd made then looked up at her mother.

"Mama," Faith said before pointing to where Melinda's handprint was. Then moved it to the other one that was larger than her own, pointing to Jim's handprint. "Da?"

"Yes, sweet girl," she whispered into a kiss on her forehead, moving her hand from where it was on her daughter's leg to place it on her handprint. "That's where Daddy's hand goes and this where mommy's goes."

Faith looked up, searching for her father, and she was startled to see he was standing in the doorway. Jim's face was dour and she knew it meant that everything was ready for them to set out. They had only to say their goodbyes.

"Da!" Faith called, reaching for him.

Jim came over and settled himself on the bed beside them, placing his hand in its spot beside theirs. He slid his arm up her back and turned to bury his face in her hair as she cried silently.

Faith continued babbling in her lap and lifted her hands from the page to tap each of theirs, "Da… Mama…" their daughter ended, slapping her hands back onto her own tiny handprints. "Fae..."

The little girl was pleased with herself but also tired after having finished her bottle of goat's milk. Faith yawned and slumped back against her mother while Jim slid the page from under their palms and carefully folded it. Melinda began humming and rocking her gently.

Their packing had gone according to plan and it was just about time for their daughter's morning nap. She sang her a lullaby and the one-year-old drifted off quickly. Jim's hand rubbed circles into her back for a few moments before he rose from the bed and helped adjust Faith in her arms so she carried her with the child's curly head tucked into the crook of her neck.

This was going to be the most difficult decision of all. How could they leave her behind even if it was to keep her safe?

* * *

Andrea was watching Eddie and Madeline (who were also fast asleep) so it was just Katherine and Ned waiting in the yard for them. Daniel was there as well, she realized as he stepped forward and dropped a hand to cover Faith's head, his large hand light drifted through her curls.

"Sleep well, lass, and mind yer aunt and uncle, eh?" Jim's brother whispered as he lightly tapped the tip of her nose with his finger and chuckled quietly when her nose scrunched in response even in her sleep. "I'll be sure to keep yer mam and da in line."

Jim turned to Ned and handed over the folded piece of paper. "Will ye hold this for Faith? Make sure she's gentle wi' it." He told him. "I trust you to keep her safe."

Ned nodded and replied, "Aye," then took the paper and tucked it carefully into his vest. "Of course I will. With my life, Jim."

He gave his friend and now brother-in-law a quick hug before he turned to Melinda and Faith and wrapped his wife in his arms so that their daughter was caught between them. "M'annsachd," he whispered as he pressed a kiss to Faith's brow before sliding a hand from where he held her to run his fingers gently over Faith's features one more time.

Finally releasing the pair of them from his grasp, Melinda stepped towards her sister, still clutching Faith desperately. She didn't want to leave her.

"You don't need to fear for her," Katherine said gently, stepping forward and placing a hand on her arm. "I promise, I would never let her come to any harm, and neither would Ned."

"I know." Her voice was faint as she spoke around the lump in her throat. Pressing her head to Faith's, she breathed in deeply, determined to capture the smell of her, and memorize it along with everything else. "Mama loves you," she whispered and then kissed Faith's temple before surrendering her to Katherine.

She had to move quickly as her tears fell. Jim's hand steadied her as she forced her feet to move to her horse and then he gave her a leg up as they mounted. Keeping close together, they rode through the gate, trying and failing not to look back. The dust of their departure was still settling as Katherine carried Faith back inside accompanied by Ned.

They rode for a couple of miles before stopping to water the horses and stretch their legs. No one argued though it was quite unnecessary. Melinda slipped eagerly from her saddle followed quickly by Jim.

Her husband looked to his brother for reassurance and saw the older man's pain and sympathy written on the line of his brow. In the privacy of the woods and with a swift burn to drown out any noise they might make, he held her tight as she sobbed into the front of his shirt, his own tears running in silent streaks down his cheeks.

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**A/N: A sad ending that hopefully will get better soon, but I can't make any promises :( I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! xx Mariah**


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